State Library Victoria Annual Fellowships Program

Applications are now open for State Library Victoria’s prestigious annual fellowships program, with a new specialist fellowship for Victorian Aboriginal researchers offered from 2018.

The Indigenous Victorian Aboriginal Cultural Research Fellowship supports Aboriginal researchers to explore the Library’s collections and engage with archival records to produce research material that can be used by the community.

Fellows receive a grant of $15,000 for three months’ research, a shared office space, and special access to collections and library experts.

This year’s fellowship program delivers a total of 15 fellowships, collectively worth up to $215,000, offering research opportunities across diverse areas including children’s literature, social history, visual arts, theatre, Ukrainian studies and Indigenous Victorian Aboriginal Culture. A Digital Fellowship introduced last year to encourage innovative uses of the Library’s digitised collections and data will be on offer again this year.

State Library Victoria CEO Kate Torney said around $2.3 million had been provided through the fellowships program over the past 16 years.

“State Library Victoria, with the support of our partners, is proud to invest in our creative community through one of Australia’s largest fellowships programs,” Ms Torney said.

“Each year, fellows have the opportunity to explore and unlock the vast potential of State Library Victoria’s collections. I am excited to find out what innovative new work results from this year’s program.

“I encourage all writers, historians, scholars and artists working in any art form – whether it’s visual arts, new media, dance, musical performance or composition – to apply for a fellowship and be inspired by the Library’s extensive collections.”

Past fellowships have produced major exhibitions, public art installations, documentaries, books, graphic novels, plays, musical scores, interactive games, web applications and many other creative projects.

Current Creative Fellow, Australian visual artist, TextaQueen, is using the Library’s archives of political posters to inspire her own poster series addressing contemporary experiences of culturally diverse and marginalised artists.

TextaQueen said the access to State Library archives and expert staff has been invaluable.

“Being a Creative Fellow has informed my work in ways that wouldn’t have otherwise been possible. It has also been great to work in a shared space with another Fellow who is also a woman of colour, to share what we’re working on and give each other feedback,” TextaQueen said.

Applications for the 2018 fellowships close at 6pm on Sunday 22 April 2021.

An information night will be held at the Library at 6pm on Tuesday 20 February in Experimedia.

Applications are now open:

Amor Residency at Baldessin Press & Studio
In association with the Baldessin Press, the Amor Residency at St. Andrews is available to a visual artist wishing to explore works on paper, in particular printmaking or artists’ books. The offer may include accommodation, printmaking tuition/ technical support, materials or editioning to the sum of $5000.

Berry Family Fellowship
A fellowship is for a project exploring an aspect of the social history of Melbourne or Victoria, based on the State Library Victoria collections. The fellowship carries a $15,000 grant and is offered every second year to commemorate the contribution of the Berry family to the cultural life of Melbourne and Victoria.

Children’s Literature Fellowship
A specialist fellowship for exploring children’s book publishing, writing or illustrating.

Creative Fellowships
Six fellowships are available to artists and scholars as individuals or collaborative partnerships for developing innovative ways to express the Library’s collections.

Digital Fellowship
This fellowship encourages new forms of scholarship that use the Library’s digitised collections and datasets. It fosters the development of innovative ways to access the Library’s digitised items, and supports the creative application of digital technologies to enhance the understanding of iconic physical items in the collection.

Georges Mora Fellowship
In association with the Georges Mora Foundation, Alliance Française de Melbourne and other partners, this fellowship gives one contemporary artist the opportunity to study, experiment and explore fresh thinking in their art. The recipient is awarded $10,000 and given access to organisations and individuals with specialist knowledge to support the artist in their research.

Indigenous Victorian Aboriginal Cultural Research Fellowship
A new specialist fellowship for researchers who identify as an Indigenous Victorian Aboriginal person. The fellowship aims to make knowledge about Victorian Aboriginal society and the Library’s collections more accessible to the Aboriginal community.

John Emmerson Research Fellowship
A specialist fellowship to utilise the John Emmerson collection of rare political, religious, philosophical and literary works on the reign of King Charles I and the English Civil War, fought during the 1640s. Named in honour of John McLaren Emmerson QC (1938–2014), a bibliophile and brilliant scholar who had careers as an Oxford physicist and a Melbourne barrister, the fellowship is supported by a generous bequest from John Emmerson.

Redmond Barry Fellowship
In association with the University of Melbourne, the Redmond Barry Fellowship is available to scholars and writers for the production of literary works. The fellow receives a grant of up to $20,000 for three to six months’ research.

Ukrainian Studies Foundation in Australia Fellowship
A specialist fellowship for applicants interested in exploring Ukrainian history and/or culture in Australia and, in particular, in Victoria. The fellowship includes a $15,000 grant and is for three months full-time or longer if undertaken part time.

The fellowships are funded by the State Library Victoria Foundation and other program partners, and are awarded annually on the advice of independent expert panels.

Recipients of the 2018 fellowships program will be announced in July 2018.

Further information: https://www.slv.vic.gov.au/about-us/fellowships

 

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