Postdoctoral positions in ERC-funded project THINGSTIGATE

HDK-Valand Academy of Art and Design at University of Gothenburg

Application deadline: December 22, 2022 

HDK-Valand Academy of Art and Design at University of Gothenburg 
Kristinelundsgatan 6-8 
SE-SE-405 30 Gothenburg
Sweden 

www.gu.se 
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We are now welcoming applications for two postdoctoral positions for the European Research Council-funded project THINGSTIGATE, that aims to discover how aesthetic objects instigate sociopolitical change.

The University of Gothenburg tackles society’s challenges with diverse knowledge. 56,000 students and 6,600 employees make the university a large and inspiring place to work and study. Strong research and attractive study programmes attract scientists and students from around the world. With new knowledge and new perspectives, the University contributes to a better future.

HDK-Valand—Academy of Art and Design, at the University of Gothenburg, conducts education and research in Design, Film, Photography, Fine Art, Crafts and Literary Composition—as well as teacher education in Visual Arts and Sloyd. We provide highly specialized degree programmes in an outgoing, international environment—where our unique and broad range of subjects also enables our students and staff to foster a broader artistic perspective, as well as to explore new working models and research fields. Together with our sister department—the Academy of Music and Drama—we form the most broad-ranging faculty of arts in Scandinavia.

THINGSTIGATE—Things for Politics' Sake: Aesthetic Objects and Social Change
Many believe that art is transformative, that it can change society and politics. But how does art exactly do this? THINGSTIGATE hypothesizes that this transformation pivots on aesthetic objects, and occurs within a tripartite framework of imagination, emotion, and sociopolitical institutions. The project combines archival studies, participatory art in everyday life, and longitudinal tracing of aesthetic objects, specifically ones that stimulate imagination and emotion on the nation-state as a sociopolitical institution. It will reinvent methods from large-scale studies of contentious politics to grammatically analyze the sociopolitical relations emanating out of objects in three decades of socially engaged art archives. Findings will be tested in public interventions—both physically in Sweden, Italy, USA, and digitally in Indonesia—where participants assemble and make aesthetic objects. These objects will be traced longitudinally to pinpoint when and how they instigate transformations within sociopolitical institutions. Visit here for further information on the research project THINGSTIGATE—Things for Politics' Sake: Aesthetic Objects and Social Change.

Postdoctoral research positions
We are now seeking two postdoctoral researchers to join the core team of the research project "THINGSTIGATE—Things for Politics' Sake: Aesthetic Objects and Social Change"(European Research Council grant 101041284), led by artist Dr. Tintin Wulia (Principal Investigator/PI).

One of these postdocs will specialize in public interventions/field methods. For this position, applications are encouraged from participatory art practice-based researchers, visual sociologists and visual anthropologists, art historians, cultural studies researchers, sociologists and anthropologists of visual culture and material culture, STS researchers, political scientists, and other researchers in cognate disciplines with a doctoral degree. This position is for two years starting from March 1, 2023 or a date we later agree upon. Information on duties, eligibility, assessment criteria, and how to apply to this postdoctoral position can be found here.

The other postdoc will specialize in archival research methods. For this position, applications are encouraged from sociologists and anthropologists of visual culture and material culture, political scientists, STS researchers, cultural studies researchers, visual sociologists and visual anthropologists, art historians, participatory art practice-based researchers, and other researchers in cognate disciplines with a doctoral degree. This position is for two and a half years starting from March 1, 2023 or a date we later agree upon. For detailed information on duties, eligibility, assessment criteria, and how to apply to this postdoctoral position visit here.

Applications must be received by: December 22, 2022 through the University recruitment system, see position specific links above.

Contact information
If you have any questions about the position, please contact artist/PI Dr Tintin Wulia, tintin.wulia@gu.se. If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Human Resources at HDK-Valand, hr@hdk-valand.gu.se