The University of Manitoba
School of Art
Position start date: 1 July 2020
Closing date for applications: 29 November 2019
Position Number: 28095
Title: Assistant Professor (tenure-track)
Salary Range: Commensurate with qualifications and experience
The School of Art at the University of Manitoba invites applications for a full-time tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor in the area of Indigenous Art History commencing July 1, 2020, or as soon thereafter as possible.
We welcome candidates working in Indigenous Art History, with an emphasis on Indigenous Art in Canada. A focus on Indigenous art in Manitoba and the surrounding regions would be an asset. We seek candidates with a strong research program, a significant publication record, and an ability to integrate historical, critical, curatorial, and theoretical understandings of Indigenous Art into their teaching and research. Ideal candidates will have demonstrated commitment and leadership in the areas of Indigenous art history and visual culture, student achievement, and community engagement. The successful applicant must hold a PhD in Art History or a closely related discipline, or be very close to completion. Applicants should demonstrate their ability to establish an active research program, and promote collaboration within the School, across campus, and in the wider community. The position includes responsibilities in teaching, research and service. Teaching experience in Art History is required and curatorial experience would be an asset.
This is an exciting opportunity to join a dynamic and innovative educational community located on the Fort Garry campus of the University of Manitoba. The School of Art has 16 full-time faculty, and over 300 students. The School of Art is located in ARTlab, an award-winning, state-of-the-art structure, which houses classrooms and studios for art history, drawing, painting, video, print media, photography, graphic design, and digital media. It also houses the School of Art Gallery, with some 5000 works of art readily available for research and teaching. The School of Art also has a significant historical collection of prints housed in a specially designed facility. The University of Manitoba’s Architecture and Art Library has one of the richest collections of literature on art history in the country. The Art History Resource Room offers Art History majors a welcoming space in which to work and socialize. Faculty are also provided office and studio space in the adjoining Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald Wing of Taché Hall. The Archives and Special Collections of the University of Manitoba Libraries houses significant collections related to the study of art and Indigenous History. The School of Art offers excellent opportunities for research, collaboration, and teaching in both graduate and undergraduate programs. The School of Art offers an MFA in studio practice as well as a BFA and BFA Honours programs in studio practice and art history. For further information, please visit the School of Art website: www.umanitoba.ca/schools/art. An MFA program in Art History is in the planning stages at the University of Manitoba.
The University of Manitoba campuses are located on Treaty One Territory, on the original lands of the Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota, and Dene peoples, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation. Creating Pathways to Indigenous Achievement is a key priority for the University, as identified in its 2015-2020 Strategic Plan, Taking Our Place. Home to a vibrant Indigenous community, with more than 2,400 First Nations, Métis, and Inuit students, the U of M has one of the largest Indigenous student populations in the country. Honoured to be chosen as the host of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, the University of Manitoba is dedicated to advancing Indigenous research and scholarship, and to becoming a centre of excellence for this work. The dynamic Department of Native Studies in the Faculty of Arts has a record of supporting research, public lectures and teaching related to Indigenous art and art history, and it is expected that the successful candidate will establish close relations with its undergraduate and graduate programs.
Manitoba’s Indigenous population is young and rapidly growing. Statistics Canada census data suggest that Indigenous peoples will comprise nearly 19 per cent of Manitoba’s population by 2026. The University of Manitoba’s role in reconciliation; its connections with Indigenous students, partners and communities; and its commitment to Indigenous achievement are central to the kind of future the University seeks to create.
The University is located in Winnipeg, the largest city in the province of Manitoba. The city has a rich cultural environment. The Winnipeg Art Gallery, Plug In ICA, Urban Shaman, Ace Art Inc, Video Pool, Martha Street Studios, and the Platform Centre for Photographic and Digital Arts are among its many exciting gallery venues. Winnipeg is the site of significant Indigenous intellectual and cultural infrastructure, including APTN, the national Indigenous television network, and is the birthplace of the “Indian Group of Seven.” The Winnipeg Art Gallery has rich collections of historical Canadian and international art, and a rapidly expanding collection of contemporary Indigenous art. It has the largest collection of modern Inuit art of any public institution in the world, and currently employs three Indigenous curators on its staff. The Manitoba Museum has significant holdings of historical Indigenous art, and the Hudson’s Bay Archives, located in the city, is one of the most important archives of its kind in the world. The internationally recognized and distributed art journal Border Crossings, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, the Manitoba Opera, and the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre are some of the city’s major cultural institutions. A varied and innovative calendar of cultural festivals with a strong emphasis on the visual and performing arts complements Winnipeg’s rich “brick and mortar” cultural institutions. Winnipeg is a centre for winter festivals and activities.
The University of Manitoba is strongly committed to equity and diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from women, racialized persons, Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities, persons of all sexual orientations and genders, and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas. If you require accommodation supports during the recruitment process, please contact U of M’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Facilitator, Valerie Williams at Valerie.Williams@umanitoba.ca or 204-474-8371. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority. Applicants must, at application, declare that he/she/they self-identifies as Indigenous (First Nations, Métis or Inuit).
Applications must include the following materials via email (noted below):
- A cover letter describing what you would bring to the position and how you would contribute to the educational community at the School of Art (one page, pdf file);
- Curriculum vitae detailing education, professional background, exhibition history, and teaching record (pdf file);
- Statement of teaching philosophy and practice (one page, pdf file);
- Statement of research interests (one page, pdf file);
- Examples of your scholarly work (no more than one monograph, three articles, or the equivalent)
- Names and contact information for three referees (references will be requested for short-listed candidates); and
- Indigenous self-declaration verification
Send application materials to:
Dr. Jeffery Taylor,
Chair, Search Committee
School of Art, 313 ARTlab
University of Manitoba
180 Dafoe Road
Winnipeg, Manitoba,
Canada R3T 2N2
soa.executiveassistant@umanitoba.ca
Consideration of applications will begin 1 December 2019 and will continue until the position is filled.
Applications, including letters of reference, will be handled in accordance with the protection of privacy provisions of The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (Manitoba). Please note that each curriculum vitae may be provided to participating members of the search proces