The Department of Art of Asia, Oceania, and Africa studies, interprets, maintains, and manages a large collection of art from many countries and regions including China, Japan, Korea, India, Iran, Turkey, Southeast Asia, Africa and Oceania. The staff members of the department organize special exhibitions and temporary exhibitions in the permanent galleries, research the collections, enter information into the museum’s database system, and coordinate loans to other institutions.
The Art of Asia, Oceania and Africa department seeks a volunteer to assist with preliminary research on a series of important objects soon to be included in an upcoming exhibition of Islamic art from the MFA collection. Working under the Curator of South Asian and Islamic Art, the volunteer will review relevant literature, search for related objects, and perform a variety of other research tasks on objects ranging from Mamluk glass to Persian paintings. The volunteer’s goal will be to produce a robust “object file” on each assigned object. This preliminary stage of exhibition research will provide a critically important foundation supporting the subsequent stages of research and writing. A skilled volunteer could make a major contribution to the ultimate form and content of the exhibition.
Responsibilities:
• Reviewing existing files on given objects
• Tracking down publications in which an object has been reproduced and/or discussed
• Locating and documenting related objects
• Gathering relevant scholarly literature
• Creating summary documentation outlining the state of knowledge on a particular object and potential avenues of further inquiry
• Compiling thorough and well-organized files containing all of the above information
Qualifications:
• Graduate level coursework or degree in Islamic art
• Excellent library research skills; ability to carry out thorough literature reviews
• Attention to detail and organizational skills
• Interest in exhibition development
• Ability to commit to 10-15 hours per week (within 9a-5p, M-F parameters) for at least six months