Many of you will know that there is a University and Colleges Union strike going on nationally. You may have seen pickets yesterday and today at UCL and elsewhere. Birkbeck lecturers are also going on strike from Monday. The full strike dates are:
Monday 24, Tuesday 25 and Wednesday 26 February
Monday 2, Tuesday 3, Wednesday 4 and Thursday 5 March
Monday 9, Tuesday 10, Wednesday 11, Thursday 12 and Friday 13 March
Thursday 19 and Friday 20 March.
If you’re a current student and have classes on any of those days, please look out on your email to see whether your classes are cancelled. If you were planning on attending research or information events in the department or elsewhere in Birkbeck on these days, also keep your eyes open for cancellations. There is a useful list of FAQs issued by Birkbeck here. If you were planning on attending the Open Day on Saturday 22 February, it is still going ahead.
During the strike, there’ll be pickets outside of the School of Arts and the Main Building, and you can come and speak to members of academic staff there and learn more about the strike. There’ll also be ‘teach out’ events happening outside SOAS and Birkbeck main building, to which all are welcome – you can get more info here: Bloomsbury Teach Outs WEEK 1 (2).
Meanwhile do check out the Centre for Museum Cultures website for some exciting upcoming events:
Sarah Ferrari (whom some of you will know as one of the leaders of the department trip to Venice last year) is giving a Murray seminar with a Museums theme: ‘Provenance matters: acquisitions of Venetian Renaissance art in Northern Europe between the First and the Second World War‘. Monday 16 March 5pm, Keynes Library
Susanna Avery-Quash is Honorary Research Fellow in the department, and Senior Research Curator in the History of Collecting at the National Gallery. She is part of two events coming up next term. She’ll be speaking about ‘A History of Hanging! 200 Years of Display at the National Gallery’ on Friday 1 May, 6-7.30pm, Keynes Library (booking link on CMC website).
Frederick Mackenzie, The National Gallery when at Mr Angerstein’s House, Pall Mall (exhibited 1834). Victoria and Albert Museum.
And there’s a very rare and exciting opportunity to go behind the scenes at the National Gallery to see the Conservation Studio, Library and Archive, with Dr Avery-Quash and Head of Conservation Larry Keith on Friday 5 May, 5-7pm. Book soon, because places are limited and are bound to go quickly.
Anna Jamieson, who is doing a PhD in the department on imagery of women and madness in the 18th and 19th centuries, has recorded a podcast on ‘reflecting madness in art’ for the excellent series ‘Art Matters’ hosted by Art UK. Have a listen!
Millais, John Everett; Ophelia; Tate; http://www.artuk.org/artworks/ophelia-117686
And remember to have a look at and listen to a new programme on Michelangelo and how the artist has been presented over the years by the BBC. Michelangelo: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, features interviews with both our own Dorigen Caldwell, and Birkbeck BA and MA alum Leslie Primo. Available on the iPlayer for 25 more days!
Finally, the call for applications for our annual research fund for MA and PhD students is out. The London Art History Society (check out their website for all their many art historical activities) generously donates an amount to Birkbeck every year which allows us to support student research.
You can apply for a bursary of up to £300 if you are an MPhil/PhD student, and £150 if you are an MA student. This money must be used to support your research, and can include travel to archives, accommodation, photography, etc. You apply with an e-mail or an e-mail with a word document attached – there’s no application form. Please set out the rationale for undertaking the research clearly, and explain what it will be contributing towards (e.g., a chapter of a PhD thesis, or an MA Research Project, etc), be precise about what you will be spending the money on, and provide proper costings of the expenses to be incurred. The deadline for applications is Monday 16 March 2020; 23:59. Please send your applications to Jack Redden (j.redden@bbk.ac.uk).
