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.
2026-27 Graduate William A. Camfield Fellowship Project Description
Decorative Arts, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Supervisor: Christine Gervais, Curator, Decorative Arts
The Rice University Camfield Graduate Fellow will work with the curator and collector on the catalogue and exhibition, About Face: Portrait Miniatures from the Cecily E. Horton Collection, scheduled to open at the MFAH in early 2028. This is an excellent opportunity for a Camfield Fellow to obtain hands-on experience as we work on a project that closely examines portraiture “in little” over 300 years. The collection includes European and American works as well as images produced by painters working in India and the Caribbean. Portraits painted on vellum, fired in enamel or rendered as watercolor on ivory are all included in the survey. The fellow will assist with many aspects of the project. Tasks will include object research, label writing, tracking object photography and conservation as well as museum database checklist production. Excellent organizational skills and the ability to work independently as well as collaboratively within the department and across museum departments such as Curatorial, Conservation, Registration and Publications are required.
2026-27 Undergraduate William A. Camfield Fellowship Project Description
Black Magazines Undergraduate Fellowship
The Rice University Camfield Undergraduate Fellow in the Museum of Fine Arts Houston’s world-renowned photography department will assist in the preparation for a March 2027 exhibition. This position will conduct original research on exhibition photographs in order to develop interpretive material, and assist in the creation and execution of public programming. The position is available for the 2026-27 academic year.
From the 1930s until the 1970s, illustrated magazines were the primary means of viewing photography for all Americans. Yet, illustrated magazines produced for a Black readership have been largely overlooked. In those decades, economic growth, evolving public policy, opportunity for skill development, the Great Migration, and the Civil Rights movement all contributed to the growth of a diverse Black middle class. Black picture magazines flourished by reflecting the lives and aspirations of this burgeoning group. Yet, those publications and the photographers that contributed to their success remain largely unknown and unstudied. National publications such as Our World, Sepia, Eyes, and more, framed emerging definitions of success for Black middle-class audiences through dynamic photographs. For the first time, Bold and Brilliant: The Rise of Black American Picture Magazines, 1930 –1970 will bring to light the photographers and photographs from Black picture magazines. It will explore the ways these images helped to build American visual culture and amplify a Black middle class by presenting Black aspirations, concerns, and commonalities through the medium of photography.
Internship Learning Outcomes:
- The Intern will hone research, analytical, and critical thinking skills as related to art objects.
- The intern will acquire a critical awareness of how museums communicate complex ideas to a general audience.
- The intern will gain insight into the role of museums in culture.
- The intern will come to understand the nature and work performed in Museums and will recognize key aspects of Museum operations, such as collection management, development, museum education, visitor services, etc.
- The intern will help design, pilot, and execute public programs tailored to the themes of the exhibition and responsive to community needs.
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: March 22, 2026
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