Blogs

Photographer and teacher Paul Hill MBE has launched a petition to protect the Library of Birmingham's internationally important historic and contemporary photography collections and archives. They are in danger of being closed and mothballed and the photography collections team will be made redundant. 

The petition states: Birmingham City Council is proposing swingeing cuts at the recently opened Library of Birmingham reducing the whole library hours to 40 hours per week and staffing by just over 50 percent by April 2015.

When I, and other depositors, who include such renowned British photographic figures as Daniel Meadows, Martin Parr, John Blakemore, Brian Griffin, Vanley Burke, John Myers, Nick Hedges, and Val Williams, agreed to the library acquiring our archives or collections we were assured that they would be accessible to the public as well as specialist researchers.

As the proposal currently stands there will be no Photography Collections Team. Indeed there may not be anyone left with any specialist knowledge of these nationally and internationally significant collections in the near future. There will be no conservation department to undertake the vital work of preserving these fragile treasures, there will be little if any cataloguing undertaken, and the exhibition programme will disappear entirely.

The emphasis in the new structure is on maintaining “counter transactions” to the exclusion of other activities.  

To read more about what is being proposed: http://www.birminghampost.co.uk/news/regional-affairs/photographers-petition-halt-library-birmingham-8357877 and BPH's previous report here: http://britishphotohistory.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-library-of-birmingham-and-its-photography-collections-severel

To sign click here: http://alturl.com/d6exw

The V&A Photographs Department has issued its latest newsletter giving details of recent and forthcoming exhibitions and activities. A copy is available to download here V%26A%20Newsletter%202014.pdf. To receive it directly email Bronwen Colquhoun in the department.

Of particulate note are the forthcoming Linnaeus Tripe and Cameron exhibitions in 2015 and the permanent gallery re-hang which is titled A History of Photography: Series and Sequences and opens on 6 February which looks at series in photography. 

Image: Edgar Scamell, street hawker selling baked potatoes in London, 1892.

The V&A is holding a major exhibition to explore the contribution of Julia Margaret Cameron's contributions to the art of photography. Cameron (1815-1879) was one of the most important photographers of the nineteenth century. Criticised in her lifetime for her unconventional technical approach, she is now celebrated as a pioneering portraitist. 2015 will mark the bicentenary of Cameron’s birth and 150 years since her first museum exhibition – the only one in her lifetime – held at the South Kensington Museum (now the V&A) in 1865. Drawing on the V&A’s significant holdings, which include photographs acquired directly from Cameron and letters she wrote to Henry Cole, the museum’s founding director, this exhibition will explore Cameron’s innovative contributions to the art of photography.

The exhibition will tour internationally before and after its presentation at the V&A November 2015-February 2016 to the following venues:

• Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow, 18 November 2014 – 1 February 2015
• Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent, 14 March – 14 June 2015
• Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 14 August – 25 October 2015
• Fundacion Mapfre, Madrid, 8 March – 8 May 2016
• Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo, 29 June - 25 September 2016

The accompanying catalogue will be published by MACK in association with V&A Publishing.

Project Lead:

Marta Weiss, Curator

Project Assistant:

Erika Lederman, Factory Project Cataloguer

Paul Goodman, Head of Collections Projects, at the National Media Museum , Bradford, left the museum on 23 December 2014, following a restructuring of staff posts. Goodman had been responsible for leading on specific major collections-related activities.These had included managing the museum's three recent large acquisitions: the Impressions Gallery collection, the Ray Harryhausen archive and the Lewis Morley archive,. In addition he had been responsible for a digitisation programme of the Royal Photographic Society Collection which is held at the museum. He also oversaw the museum's collaborative conservation project with the Getty Conservation Institute.

Paul Goodman had been at the museum since 1990 when he joined as Registrar and he had held a series of jobs during his career there including managing the museum as part of a three-person team following the departure of the previous Head, Colin Philpott. 

• 1983 - 1990: Assistant Curator, Transport, Science Museum
• 1990 - 2003: Registrar, National Media Museum
• 2003 - 2007: Acting Head of Collections, National Media Museum
• 2007 - 2012: Head of Collections (& Knowledge), National Media Museum
• 2013 - 2014: Head of Collections, Projects, National Media Museum

During his career at the museum Goodman managed a number of significant acquisitions including The Royal Photographic Society Collection in 2002 and the BBC Collection in 2012. In addition to his work at the museum he is founder Trustee of the Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield and he is serves on the board of the Chambre-Hardman Photography Collection in Liverpool.

He received a the Royal Photographic Society's Colin Ford Award in 2003. 

At the time of writing he was unavailable for comment. 

Image: © Michael Pritchard. Paul Goodman, April 2014.

In case you missed it there's a fascinating article as part of the Guardian's Science The H Word series by Mirjam Brusius. She explores new archive evidence that tells a different story about the history of photographs and questions the idea of invention and 'firsts' in photography.

Well worth a read. 

http://www.theguardian.com/science/the-h-word/2014/dec/22/the-many-inventions-of-photography-mirjam-brusius

The renowned Observer newspaper photographer Jane Bown has died, aged 89. Bown began working for the Observer newspaper in 1949 and she was working almost up until she died. Her style was direct and she relied largely on natural light and her Olympus OM1 camera and, of course, her technical knowledge and personality to produce her outstanding portraits. 

She gave her entire archive to the Guardian/Observer newspaper. 

See more here: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2014/dec/21/jane-bown-a-life-in-photography-in-pictures

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/dec/21/jane-bown

Image: Jane Bown, self-portrait.

Two weeks ago BPH reported on the cuts being proposed by Birmingham City Council and their likely impact on the photography collections in the Library of Birmingham. It now seems that the impact on the photography collections which are of national and international importance and include historical collections and more recent photographers' archives are far greater than originally envisaged. In the words of Francis Hodgson '‘They’ are threatening to close down the whole of the photographic service at the Library of Birmingham, in the name of ‘cuts’.

Unfortunately this is not simply hyperbole - there is a very real threat to the photography collections and their availability to the public, students and scholars - as there is to the wider public services at the Library of Birmingham.

A briefing paper seen by BPH outlines the threat and is reproduced below. What the paper does not highlight is the threat to the staff in the photography collection led by Pete James. Any archive or collection relies on staff to make material available both physically and intellectually and there is uncertainty as whether any of the current staff will survive the cuts. Furthermore, the photography collection has been successful in recent years in securing for the nation the archives of a number of important photographers and organisations. The availability of these for study and exhibition will, inevitably, be affected. As Paul Hill has noted in a separate comment for some their acquisition has been made through public funds which have conditions attached around accessibility and been have they be taken on under false pretences? 

BPH would urge readers to sign the petition below and feedback to the council on the importance of the Library and the photography collections. There are will be other moves to highlight the impact on the photography collections which will be reported here.   

What future for the Photography Collections at the Library of Birmingham?

In 2015-16 the overall library budget will be cut by £1.5 million.  By 2018 it is predicted that the budget will have been reduced by 4 million in total. 

This will be a cut of 40%.

In 2015-16 the council is proposing to achieve £1.5 million savings by:

• Cutting the Library’s hours from 70 to 40 a week.
• Reducing Library staff by over 50%.
• Offering only a basic level of service

There will be worse to come with bigger cuts in following years.

What does this mean for you?

• What will this do to the Library’s reputation as a centre of excellence for contemporary and historical photography?
• What will be the impact on photography students, curators and researchers who maybe be prevented from accessing the photo collections and related resources?
• Many of the important photo collections are on loan to the Library.  Will depositors seek to withdraw them?
• Will the designated status of the Birmingham’s Special Collections be affected?
• Will be current collections be safe without staff to look after them?
• Will the Archives still be able to add new collections?
• Will you able to get access to collections that are already here without cataloguing and conservation work?

What can I do?

• Sign the online petition

https://www.change.org/p/birmingham-city-council-reverse-the-cuts-to-the-library-of-birmingham

• Contact the council by completing the online survey:

https://www.birminghambeheard.org.uk/budget/2015

• Email budget.views@birmingham.gov.uk or write to Budget Views, Room 221, Council House, Victoria Square, Birmingham B1 1BB
• Contact your local MP and local councillor.
• Please share this information with as many people as possible an encourage them to write in support of the collections.

The Photographic History Research Centre at De Montfort University, Leicester, has announced its seminar programme for Spring 2015. They are open to everyone, without charge, and take place on Tuesdays from 4–6pm   in the Hugh Aston Building. 

January 13  2015  (Hugh Aston 2.08)

Mirjam Brusius (University of Oxford)

Talbot’s Tools

William Henry Fox Talbot invented the calotype, yet he also had a wide interest in optics, mathematics, botany, archaeology, and classical studies. His manuscripts, now in the archives of the British Library and the Bodleian Library, reveal the connections and contrasts between his photographic innovations and his scholarly pursuits. Drawing on Talbot’s letters, research notebooks, botanical specimens, objects, and photographic prints, new research in these archives will broaden our understanding of Talbot as a Victorian intellectual and a man of science. Since the range of media and tools of his archive are almost as broad as his interests, the archive will also invite us to re-think the place of photography in Talbot studies. This paper will propose some possible avenues.

February 10  2015 (Hugh Aston 1.47)

Emily Hayes (University of Exeter/Royal Geographical Society)

Geographical projections: lantern slides, science and popular geography at the Royal Geographical Society 1886 – 1904

The period 1886-1904 was particularly significant in the professionalization and popularization of geography. This paper discusses the spatial, social and visual modalities of the lantern slide medium across the multiple lecture spaces, and before the changing audiences, of the London Royal Geographical Society (RGS) at this time. It explores the function of lantern slides as instruments of exposition and entertainment within the contexts of the RGS scientific afternoon lectures and popular evening meeting lectures. 

March 10 2015 (Hugh Aston 2.08)

Lenka Fehrenbach (University of Basel)

Being progressive. : Industrial photography in 19th century Russia

In the Russian Empire the development of photography took place during the same period in which industrialization started to take off. Contemporaries used the modern visual medium to depict the new buildings of factories, which changed the face of Russian cities. Entrepreneurs also started to appreciate the benefits of the new pictures, and used them inside their factories and to promote their businesses to a broader audience. The seminar will trace the interactions between these two fields.

Any queries, please contact the conveners: Damian Hughes and Duncan Shields, Photographic History Research Centre (damian.hughes@dmu.ac.uk). See also PHRC website or PHRC blog http://photographichistory.wordpress.com

Amsterdam's Fotorestauratie Atelier VOF is holding a course on the identification of photographic  processes led by Clara von Waldthausen, Hans Meesters or by a guest lecturer. The course covers the most common modern photograph processes and finishing techniques in theory and in practice. Participants will learn about and examine the differences between true black and white photographs, early color processes, chromogenic and silver dye bleach photography, inkjet prints and many other modern processes during a four-day workshop that is divided into theory and practical sessions. 

Identification of Modern Photograph Processes

Date:     6, 7, 8 & 9 July 2015
Costs:   595,00 euro

See: http://www.fotoconservering.nl/3173912/master-classes

Christopher Mahoney, senior Vice President of Photographs at Sotheby's New York, has announced that Denise Bethel will be stepping down as Chairman of Phtoographs, and with leave the company to work independently, advising private clients and institutions, lecturing, and writing. In a newsletter circulated to clients he notes: "Denise joined Sotheby’s in 1990.  Since then, the Photographs Department, under her leadership, has transformed the world auction market for photographs, setting every record there is to set: from a single classic photograph at auction ($2.93 million, a record that still stands today) to any photographs auction to date, our recent 175 Masterworks to Celebrate 175 Years of Photography: Property from Joy of Giving Something Foundation, at $21.3 million.       

During Denise’s time at Sotheby’s, a number of museums have entrusted us with photographs from their collections, among them The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, the George Eastman House, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Museum of the City of New York.  Our record of outstanding single-owner sales and individual artists’ records are too long to include here, but suffice it to say that Denise has been at the podium for every single one of them."

She is very widely respected both personally and for her expertise and experience.

According to her profile on Sotheby's website: 

Denise Bethel joined the Sotheby’s Photographs department in 1990 and since 1995, has been its Director and primary Auctioneer. She has played a key role in the development of the market for fine art photographs in New York, the epicenter of the photographs collecting world. Her long experience in appraising and selling significant photographs has made her the senior expert and senior auctioneer in the world of photographs auctions in the United States. 
 
Ms Bethel hammered down the most expensive classic photograph ever sold at auction, The Pond—Moonlight by Edward Steichen, at $2,928,000.  Part of the February 2006 landmark Sotheby's sale,Important Photographs from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Including Works from the Gilman Paper Company Collection, this and other blue-chip images brought a total of $14,982,900, a record for a single-owner collection of photographs sold at auction. 
 
Trusted by collectors, curators and dealers the world over, Ms Bethel has garnered for Sotheby's the lion's share of photographs sold by American museums during the past several years, among them works from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, the Museum of the City of New York, the George Eastman House, the San Diego Museum of Art, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago and the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal.
 
A frequent lecturer on the history of photography, the photographs market and collecting, Ms Bethel has spoken at a range of major institutions, including Harvard University, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, the National Portrait Gallery in Washington and in London, the International Center of Photography, and the George Eastman House, amongst many others. A noted scholar and writer, she has published numerous articles on various aspects of photography. Prior to joining Sotheby’s, Ms Bethel served ten years as Director of the Photographs department and Auctioneer at Swann Galleries, a rare books auction house in New York.
 
She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hollins College, Virginia, and a Master of Arts degree with Distinction from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London. 

This work in the area of History of Photography seeks scientific analysis of the impact of photography in science, and the role of science in the development of instrumentation and photographic processes.

In depth scientific analysis of the instrumentation and chemical/physical processes involved in the 19th-early 20th centuries of Scientific Photography has not received much attention. This is even more accurate for the related Portuguese activities in the different scientific areas that used photography and its contribution in the European context.
In Portugal the very few books on the history of Portuguese Photography addressed mainly the studies of early pioneers who practiced portraiture and landscape photography as a form of art. These publications and other ones like research papers and thesis hardly incorporate early scientific applications of photography developed by Portuguese scientists during that period in several fields such as Cartography, Oceanography, Astronomy, Meteorology, Geology and Medicine among others. Moreover, there is not a systematic study of the evolution of the chemical and physical processes used in photography as well as of the instrumentation for the above mentioned period.
The participants of this book intend to focus their study in the interpretation of the chemical/physical processes and the related instrumentation developed for scientific photography by instrument makers during the period of the 19th-early 20th century in different fields of Science. It will also be given an emphasis on the Portuguese case and its relation with the research developed in other European countries at the same period, as well as the contribution of the Portuguese scientists given to international and universal exhibitions and publications and their relations with scientific an professional societies that dealt with photography and Science.

Imargem, Almada Art Association will hold it's annual exhibition at Almada Art Gallery from 18 December to 14 February. This year there will be a homage to the photographer and master printer, António Paixão (1915-1985).

António Paixão (1915-1985) is recognized by his master printing skills, and printed for most mid to late 20th century Portuguese photographers. However he was also an important photographer, with a great record of publications, exhibitions and prizes. 

Catalogs features a text on António Paixão, by Nuno Pinheiro

Opened in 2013, Media Space is an exciting collaboration between the Science Museum and the National Media Museum in Bradford, home of the National Photography Collection. A new London venue for world quality photography exhibitions and events, Media Space includes a 525m² major exhibition gallery and the flexible 300m²  Virgin Media Studio. 

This is an exciting opportunity for anyone with a passion for art or photography wishing to develop a career in art galleries or museums. 

As our Media Space Assistant, you will be immersed in the day-to-day running of Media Space, responsible for provision of full administrative support to the team.

Your role will be highly varied, including such duties as updating the gallery schedule, financial administration, arranging and supporting meetings, maintaining mailing lists, and handling public enquiries. In addition to this, you will have a unique opportunity to see first-hand how world-class photography exhibitions are developed and delivered.

You will also support event and project organisation, and promote effective communication about the work of your team across the Museum. 

See: https://vacancies.nmsi.ac.uk/VacancyDetails.aspx?FromSearch=True&MenuID=6Dqy3cKIDOg=&VacancyID=841

Equal Opportunities

To help us monitor the effectiveness of our recruitment campaigns please can you update your details on the “My Details” section. This information will be used for monitoring purposes only and will be treated as strictly confidential.

How to apply

Please take time to read all the following instructions carefully, together with the full job description below.

When you apply you will be asked to upload a covering statement in Microsoft Word format (the document must be in .doc .docx .txt or .pdf format and the maximum file size is 2 MB). You are advised to prepare this document in advance of making your application online.  Please also ensure that you have uploaded your CV as a separate document which you can do when you create an account or log in.  

In your covering statement you are asked to respond to the following questions. Please number your responses individually. Your covering statement should be no longer than two pages in total.

If you don't respond to these questions, we will not be able to consider your application. 

1. Please tell us what attracts you to this role, and what you feel you can bring to it.
2. Please outline your office experience to date, giving us some examples that demonstrate the range of your organisational and administrative skills.
3. Please describe a work situation where you have had to manage competing deadlines and yet work fast and accurately.
4. Please tell us about an exhibition you have visited recently and what you admired or disliked about it. 
5. Please state: i) your current or most recent salary and benefits package; ii) your notice period or the earliest date you could start; and iii) where you saw this advertisement.

If you are applying for more than one role please upload your CV and then prepare your covering statement for each role as separate documents.

SMG Job Description

Job Details

Job Title:          Media Space Assistant

Department:     Media Space

Location:          Science Museum

Reports to:       Head of Photography

Date:                December 2014

Purpose of the Job

To provide administrative support to the Media Space team who originate and produce an annual programme of world-class photography exhibitions, commissions, publications and events.

Key Deliverables/Accountabilities

1. Provides full administrative support to the Head of Photography
2. Organises team meetings, cross-museum meetings, strategy meetings. Produces and distributes minutes as requested
3. Responsible for office administration including stationery, filing, archiving.
4. Maintains gallery schedules, and ensures up-to-date communication of Media Space schedule to Science Museum and National Media Museum colleagues
5. Assists team with financial administration on Focal Point
6. Organises and updates Media Space contacts list
7. Is the first point of contact for Media Space, answering general public enquiries and Science Museum Group enquiries
8. Ensures unsolicited applications for exhibitions are responded to appropriately, in liaison with curators
9. Organises Collectors’ Group meetings
10. Assists with event organising and Private View organising as requested
11. Provides administrative support for the Krasna Krausz Book Awards, prize, exhibition display and Award evening
12. Recruits and manages volunteers/interns
13. Take care of your personal health and safety and that of others and report any health and safety concerns.  Ensure proactive compliance with Science Museum Group H&S Policies, including risk assessments and implementing safe systems of work

Working Relationships and Contacts

Head of Photography

Media Space team

Colleagues across Science Museum Group

External stakeholder and VIPs

Line Management and Budget Responsibility

No direct line management

Supervision of volunteers and interns as required

Budget Holder of £0

Candidate Profile

Experience

• Previous experience in an administrative role, preferably within the galleries and museums sector
• Experience of dealing with senior managers and significant external stakeholders with confidence and professionalism

Skills, Knowledge and Relevant Qualifications

• Demonstrable enthusiasm for the arts and photography in particular
• Excellent IT skills and a thorough knowledge of MS Office packages
• Excellent attention to detail
• Excellent written and verbal communication and numerical skills
• Ability to work to tight, competing deadlines, managing time and resources accordingly
• Ability to prioritise work and problem solve using own initiative
• Degree level education in a relevant discipline or equivalent experience is desirable

Behaviours

• Team Working: actively participates sensitively and flexibly as a team member
• Achieving Results: takes initiative and ownership to deliver results within time, quality and cost expectations
• Problem Solving & Creativity: discusses problems appropriately, exploring viable options to resolve issues
• Customer Service: proactively responds to customer’s needs

Scope for Impact

As first point of contact for the Media Space team, the post holder will be an ambassador for the department, giving a strong and professional first impression

Plays a key role in keeping the team running smoothly

Please note:

• This job description is not exhaustive and amendments and additions may be required in line with future changes in policy, regulation or organisational requirements, it will be reviewed on a regular basis.
• This role is subject to a Disclosure Scotland basic criminal record check

Opened in 2013, Media Space is an exciting collaboration between the Science Museum and the National Media Museum in Bradford, home of the National Photography Collection. A new London venue for world quality photography exhibitions and events, Media Space includes a 525m² major exhibition gallery and the flexible 300m²  Virgin Media Studio. 

The Associate Curator plays a key role in the creation and delivery of an annual programme of world-class exhibitions, events and publications. Exhibitions will range from collection displays to loan-based exhibitions, international museum collaborations, and commissions with living artists and photographers. 

You will work alongside Curators and the Head of Photography to increase access to the National Photography Collection, and to build and develop the collection through acquisition and donation. You will also generate exciting ideas for learning programmes and events, web and digital content.

We expect you to have a curatorial interest in photography which might include special interest in 19^th century, 20^th century and/or 21^st century.  

Equal Opportunities

To help us monitor the effectiveness of our recruitment campaigns please can you update your details on the “My Details” section. This information will be used for monitoring purposes only and will be treated as strictly confidential.

How to apply

Please take time to read all the following instructions carefully, together with the full job description below.

When you apply you will be asked to upload a covering statement in Microsoft Word format (the document must be in .doc .docx .txt or .pdf format and the maximum file size is 2 MB). You are advised to prepare this document in advance of making your application online.  Please also ensure that you have uploaded your CV as a separate document which you can do when you create an account or log in.  

In your covering statement you are asked to respond to the following questions. Please number your responses individually. Your covering statement should be no longer than two pages in total.

If you don't respond to these questions, we will not be able to consider your application. 

1. Please tell us what attracts you to this role, and what you feel you can bring to it.
2. Outline for us an exhibition and/or publication that you have successfully organised or curated. Please describe: i) the steps you took to organise it, ii) the challenges you faced and iii) how you went about resolving those challenges.
3. Please analyse a photography exhibition, historical or contemporary, that you have visited and give us your view on its strengths and weaknesses, from: i) a curatorial perspective and ii) an audience perspective. 
4. Please state: i) your current or most recent salary and benefits package; ii) your notice period or the earliest date you could start; and iii) where you saw this advertisement.

If you are applying for more than one role please upload your CV and then prepare your covering statement for each role as separate documents.

See: https://vacancies.nmsi.ac.uk/VacancyDetails.aspx?FromSearch=True&MenuID=6Dqy3cKIDOg=&VacancyID=842

SMG JOB DESCRIPTION

Job Details

Job Title:           Associate Curator, Media Space

Department:      Media Space

Location:           Science Museum

Reports to:        Exhibition Curator

Date:                 December 2014

Purpose of the Job

To play a key role in the team working to establish Media Space as a leading international venue for photography exhibitions and a centre for the study and understanding of photography

To contribute to the development and delivery of a programme of world-class exhibitions, publications and events at Media Space in both the Main Gallery (550 sq metres) and the Studio Gallery (350 sq m)

To work with Exhibition Curators and Head of Photography to increase access to the National Photography Collection, and to build and develop the collection through acquisition and donation

Key Deliverables/Accountabilities

1. Proposes exhibition ideas in the context of programming discussions with Curators and Head of Photography
2. Proposes ideas for accompanying programmes of talks and events and occasional external projects
3. Researches and proposes acquisitions to develop the National Photography Collection
4. Assists in the successful delivery of individual exhibitions to schedule, to budget and in line with audience targets
5. Assists with updating and monitoring budgets, working to achieve best value for money; evaluating and communicating areas of risk in the development of the project, and ensuring that all necessary contracts are in place, and procurement is effected in line with Science Museum Group policy
6. Assists Curator and liaises with Registrar CCI to ensure all loan requests are requested and administered to the highest standard.  Liaises with Registrar CCI to ensure Immunity from Seizure, insurance and transport is organised in a timely fashion. Liaises with Conservation to ensure that condition reports for incoming and outgoing works are in place
7. Liaises with Gallery Manager, Conservation, registrar (CCI), and Visitor Experience to ensure the exhibition is organised, maintained and experienced to the highest standards
8. Collaborates with communications, marketing and development to achieve highest impact campaigns ensuing that copyright clearances and permissions are in place as necessary
9. Supports the development of Media Space income streams by contributing ideas, commissioning and editing content for publishing, web and limited editions and merchandise, and working with the Touring team in collaboration with Commercial
10. Builds a national and international network of artists, dealers, collectors, international museums, freelance curators, and other potential supporters
11. Writes grant and funding requests from Foundation and Trusts as requested
12. Take care of your personal health and safety and that of others and report any health and safety concerns.  Ensure proactive compliance with Science Museum Group H&S Policies, including risk assessments and implementing safe systems of work

Working Relationships and Contacts

Media Space team

Colleagues across SMG and the galleries and museums sector

Living artists, major donors and funders

Line Management and Budget Responsibility

Management of contractors and freelancers from time to time

Supervision of volunteers and interns as required           

Budget Holder of c.£40,000 for individual projects

Candidate Profile

Experience

• Previous experience organising art or photography exhibitions in public or private galleries
• Some experience working on major loan exhibitions and publications
• A curatorial interest in photography, which might include subject interests in one or all of: 19th century British and international; 20th century international, 21st century international, including film, video and digital.
• Experience working with living artists and photographers in the commissioning and display of new work
• Experience working as part of a project team working to deliver an exhibition programme in a fast paced environment

Skills, Knowledge and Relevant Qualifications

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent attention to detail
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Ability to work on complex projects and manage multiple priorities
• A results-oriented, fast, accurate and effective working style
• A passion for photography and art
• Knowledge of another language desirable

Behaviours

• Team Working: actively participates sensitively and flexibly as a team member
• Achieving Results: takes initiative and ownership to deliver results within time, quality and cost expectations
• Problem Solving & Creativity: discusses problems appropriately, exploring viable options to resolve issues
• Customer Service: proactively responds to customer’s needs
• Thinking: makes sound decisions based on effective analysis and exploration of options

Scope for Impact

Create and maintain a database of supporters and contacts, and nurture relationships in order to build a Collector’s Circle of supporters and donors to support acquisitions.

Major scope to contribute to the development of Media Space as a major art space with an international reputation

Please note:

• This job description is not exhaustive and amendments and additions may be required in line with future changes in policy, regulation or organisational requirements, it will be reviewed on a regular basis.
• This role is subject to a Disclosure Scotland basic criminal record check

This spring the V&A will present a display of over 50 recently acquired photographs that explore the experiences of black people in Britain in the latter half of the 20th century, enhanced by excerpts from oral histories gathered by Black Cultural Archives.

Over the last seven years the V&A has been working with Black Cultural Archives to acquire photographs either by black photographers or which document the lives of black people in Britain, a previously under-represented area in the V&A’s photographs collection. Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), the Museum has been able to collect 118 works by 17 artists ranging from Yinka Shonibare’s large-scale series Diary of a Victorian Dandy (1998), to studies of elaborate headties worn by Nigerian women, by J.D. Okhai Ojeikere, to black and white street photography of 1970s London by Al Vandenberg.

Staying Power will showcase a variety of photographic responses to black British experience. On display will be intimate portrayals of British-Caribbean life in London in the 1960s-70s by Neil Kenlock, Armet Francis, Dennis Morris and Charlie Phillips. Music, style and fashion are documented in Raphael Albert’s depictions of the black beauty pageants he organised from the 1960s to the 1980s to help celebrate the growing black community in Britain and Norman ‘Normski’ Anderson’s colourful depictions of vibrant youth culture of the 1980s and 90s.

The display also features more conceptual explorations of race and identity. Yinka Shonibare’s series, Diary of a Victorian Dandy, depicts the artist playing the role of a dandy. The work demonstrates Shonibare’s identification with the dandy as an outsider or foreigner who uses his flamboyance, wit and style to penetrate the highest levels of society, which would otherwise be closed to him. Maxine Walker also draws attention to racial stereotypes by photographing herself in a variety of guises. In her Untitled series (1995) she presents herself with different skin tones and hairstyles as though they were instantaneous transformations made in a photo booth.

To complement the photographs, Black Cultural Archives have collected oral histories from a range of subjects including the photographers themselves, their relatives, and the people depicted in the images. To coincide with the display at the V&A, Black Cultural Archives will also present an exhibition drawn from the V&A’s Staying Power collection (15 January - 30 June 2015) at their heritage centre in Brixton.

Staying Power: Photographs of Black British Experience, 1950s-1990s 16 February – 24 May 2015 
V&A, London

Image: Francis Armet, Self-Portrait in Mirror, London, 1964 / Victoria and Albert, London

A major new study of two of Scotland's most influential Victorian amateur photographers, the surgeon Dr Thomas Keith and his future brother-in-law, miller and art collector, John Forbes White will be published in April 2015 and limited to an edition of 500 copies. 

Written and researched by John Hannavy The Victorian Photographs of Dr Thomas Keith and John Forbes White explores the life and work of two of Scotland's most important early photographers. Interest in the early Waxed Paper photography of Thomas Keith and John Forbes White has increased considerably over the years and this book involves a major reappraisal of the work of these two eminent amateurs. 

A great deal of significant work has been undertaken by numerous researchers on mid-19th century Scottish photography in the past thirty years, making it possible now to place the work of these talented amateurs within the much more clearly understood context of early photography in Scotland.

Examples of the superb work of both men will be drawn from collections in Europe, Canada and America, including many images rarely if ever seen before. It will be illustrated throughout in colour to capture the unique character of mid 19th century salted paper prints.

The book is 144 pages, 265 x 210mm landscape format, casebound, and with full colour illustrations of nearly two hundred images by Keith and White and their immediate circle, as well as examples of the work of the earliest pioneers of Scottish photography. It is available at a cost of £20 plus post and packing. 

To order contact John Hannavy Publishing, 8 High Street, Great Cheverell, Wiltshire, SN10 5TH. www.johnhannavy.co.uk or e: john@johnhannavy.co.uk.

The exhibition of Modern Photographs from the Thomas Walther Collection, 1909–1949 which is on show at New York's Museum of Modern Art until 19 April 2015 is supported by a website Object:Photo. Modern Photographs 1909–1949: The Thomas Walther Collection dedicated to the research and conservation of the 341 photographs in the Collection. 

The Museum acquired Thomas Walther’s private collection in 2001. Featuring iconic works by such towering figures as Berenice Abbott, Karl Blossfeldt, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Claude Cahun, Alvin Langdon Coburn, Florence Henri, André Kertész, Germaine Krull, El Lissitzky, Lucia Moholy, László Moholy-Nagy, Aleksandr Rodchenko, Alfred Stieglitz, Paul Strand, Maurice Tabard Umbo, and Edward Weston, along with lesser-known treasures by more than 100 other practitioners. 

The website 

Object:Photo. Modern Photographs 1909–1949:The Thomas Walther Collection is a model for how such a collection or group of photographs can be examined and interpreted and made available to both scholars and the wider public. Other institutions should take note. Highly recommended.

Christina Broom is widely considered to be the UK’s first female press photographer, beginning her photographic career at the age of 40, in 1903, when she published her first news photographs as postcards.

This major exhibition, the first entirely dedicated to her, will feature a cross-section of her impressive work including many photographs that have previously been in private collections and never-before-seen on public display. These will be joined by original glass plate negatives, postcards, and objects which build a fuller picture of Broom’s character and her career, including personal possessions, letters, event passes, autograph books, notebooks and cuttings books.

Read more about Broom by curator Anna Sparham here: http://blog.museumoflondon.org.uk/christina-broom-pioneering-photographer/?_ga=1.225646426.159301319.1418551248

There is more about the history of the Broom photographs here: http://britishphotohistory.ning.com/profiles/blogs/exhibition-christina-broom-britain-s-first-female-press-photograp

The exhibition takes place at the Museum of London Docklands from 19 June-1 November 2015, admission is free. Details here: http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/docklands/whats-on/exhibitions-displays/christina-broom/

Here are 3 albumen prints of what I assume are sections of the Parthenon Frieze in the British Museum. There are tiny oval blind stamps within the images -I can only read 'Mansell & Co.': 

Would anyone know who the photographer was? 

Were these part of a published portfolio or book?

Any information would help.

Thanks! David

On Wednesday, 17 December 2014 Cathrin Hauswald will present a paper ‘A. L. Coburn's photographic autobiography as an instrument of “ennoblement”’ The paper is part of a larger project tracing the development from pictorialism to abstraction in photography at the beginning of 20th century. It focuses on Coburn’s self-portraits and in his autobiography, to show how these strategies of self-expression function as means to inscribe himself in the history of photography. 

The seminar on Wednesday, 17 December 2014, 18:00-19:30, is hosted by the History and Theory of Photography Research Centre, Birkbeck, and is free and open to all, at 43 Gordon Sq, London WC1H 0PD, Room 112.

Cathrin Hauswald is from the Universität Konstanz. 

See: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/arts/research/photography