This Fellowship--originally created in July 2001 with the retirement of a beloved professor, past department Chair, and tireless advocate of the arts in Houston--supports student learning and curatorial training under the auspices of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. One undergraduate and one graduate fellow is selected for each academic year (September-May); each has the opportunity to work directly with a professional museum curator at the MFAH.
All graduate students and undergraduate students (excluding graduating seniors) of any major are welcome to apply.
Undergraduate students successfully awarded with the Camfield Fellowship will be required to enroll in three credits of HART 301 in both the fall and spring semesters during their museum internship. Graduate fellows will be required to enroll in three credits of HART 501 in the fall and spring semesters.
2025-26 Undergraduate William A. Camfield Fellowship Project Description
Ancient Mediterranean Art and Provenance
Supervisor/Curatorial Team: Danielle Bennett, Assistant Research Curator
The Fellow will gain first-hand experience with provenance research, which focuses on elucidating the ownership histories of works of art. As provenance becomes an increasingly crucial part of the collections research undertaken by museums, this project will allow the Fellow to explore one of the career pathways in museums. The Fellow will become familiar with provenance standards, archival research, movement of objects on the art market, and digital research resources for the field of provenance research as well as develop transferrable skills in project management, analytical research, database management, and documentation. Working with the Assistant Research Curator, the Fellow will work on an individual project featuring a selection works of art identified as Judaica, an area of the collection with works ranging from the 5th to the 20th centuries in date. The new research will expand the online collection entries on the works.
2025-26 Graduate William A. Camfield Fellowship Project Description
Asian Art Department
Supervisor/Curatorial Team: Bradley Bailey, Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Curator of Asian Art
From 1927-1940, the sosaku hanga (“creative prints”) artist Koizumi Kishio undertook his magnum opus: singlehandedly designing and printing his “100 Views of Great Tokyo in the Showa Era,” a set of 100 woodblock prints showing the dynamic reconstruction of the Imperial City in the wake of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and the incorporation of new wards into the capital, which transformed from “Tokyo” to “Great Tokyo” (‘dai tokyo’) as it expanded outward. This print series, which continues in the tradition of artists like Hiroshige and Kiyochika, is extremely rare. Only 10 complete sets were made and to date only two have been discovered. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, has recently acquired one of the two known complete sets.
Working with Dr. Bradley Bailey, Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Curator of Asian Art, the Camfield Fellow will assist in compiling research about each of the 100 sites documented by Koizumi, with special emphasis on those locations that appear in multiple versions of the 100 views (for example Shiba Bay in Hiroshige’s Edo was a sailboat crossing, while in Meiji Tokyo it was a rail bridge; in Koizumi’s time a new drawbridge was built) to study and document the transformation of the metropolis during the early 20th century.
Research will incorporate governmental and architectural history, as well as extensive study of the social milieu of 1930s Japan, a time of incredibly stylish design, raucous Jazz clubs, and industrial progress, against a backdrop of creeping nationalism and imperialism. The fellow will also learn about the Sosaku Hanga (“Creative Prints”) movement that emerged in the early 20th century, as well as Koizumi’s many innovative techniques to achieve new artistic effects.
As the long-term result of this research will be an exhibition centered around Koizumi, the Fellow will also gain experience with exhibition planning and design, as well as the production of didactic materials, such as catalogue entries, wall labels, and more. Depending on the progress of the Fellow, there may also be opportunities to meet and interview contemporary artists associated with the project, such as Paul Binnie and Yamaguchi Akira. Japanese language research skills are not required but will be highly valued. Knowledge of Japanese woodblock prints and the history of 20th century Japan are also desirable though not required.
To apply: submit 1) a brief (1-2 page) statement expressing the applicant’s willingness to undertake the internship and how the Fellowship would enhance the applicant’s other studies at Rice, and career goals in the arts, 2) a CV, and 3) an unofficial transcript.
DEADLINE: Applications closed for 2025
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