PhD Study : Grammar of Damask Design - An Irish heritage shaping future textile production

Summary

This practice-based PhD will utilise research gathered and disseminated by a Heritage Lottery Funded (HLF, REF OH-16-01266) grant led by Trish Belford and Professor Barbara Dass. The research project (Reviving Liddell Damask Design Heritage 2016-2018) restored, digitised and catalogued 1600 glass photographic plates from the William Liddell Company. The William Liddell Company was one of the most forward-thinking damask weaving companies in Northern Ireland. The plates document the working methodologies of designers and drafters in the Liddell company 1920-1960, a unique record uncovering high levels of graphic rendering skills, sophisticated understanding of pattern and extensive knowledge of the grammar of Damask weave structures.  The two-year HLF research project has also conducted three road shows in Counties Down, Antrim and Armagh recording tacit knowledge thus enriching knowledge of personal and community contexts involved in linen production.

This practice- based research utilises the information gathered and documented from the HLF project to develop and create a new body of work using the processes of weave and print. The HLF grant was only able to touch on key elements of the processes and oral histories embedded within the industry, but it has uncovered an urgent need to capture and enrich the narrative of our design heritage. This knowledge has potential, as practice-led research, to generate new models of design practice for advanced textile production. This PhD will initiate research into the regional textile industry, both past and present to understand the landscape and heritage of the great wealth of design practice. The processes and structures employed to create the intricate damask designs will be researched and re-imagined using both digital and analogue technology and the taxonomy of Damask design emerging for the Liddell archive. The research will be focussed on three key aspects of textile design practice: the grammar of woven Damask structures, the science of materials and the chemistry of finishing cloth. Clusters of research around these fields will be formed and interrogated through collaboration with industry, analysis of historical archives and tacit knowledge and challenging the parameters of new textile technologies. Irish Linen, Linen Heritage, Damask Design, Digital and Analogue Design, New Materials and Technologies, Textile Production.

Essential criteria

Applicants should hold, or expect to obtain, a First or Upper Second Class Honours Degree in a subject relevant to the proposed area of study.

We may also consider applications from those who hold equivalent qualifications, for example, a Lower Second Class Honours Degree plus a Master’s Degree with Distinction.

In exceptional circumstances, the University may consider a portfolio of evidence from applicants who have appropriate professional experience which is equivalent to the learning outcomes of an Honours degree in lieu of academic qualifications.

• Sound understanding of subject area as evidenced by a comprehensive research proposal
• A comprehensive and articulate personal statement

Desirable Criteria

If the University receives a large number of applicants for the project, the following desirable criteria may be applied to shortlist applicants for interview.

• Research project completion within taught Masters degree or MRES
• Practice-based research experience and/or dissemination
• Experience using research methods or other approaches relevant to the subject domain
• Work experience relevant to the proposed project

Funding and eligibility

The University offers the following levels of support:

Vice Chancellors Research Studentship (VCRS)

The following scholarship options are available to applicants worldwide:

• Full Award: (full-time tuition fees + £19,000 (tbc))
• Part Award: (full-time tuition fees + £9,500)
• Fees Only Award: (full-time tuition fees)

These scholarships will cover full-time PhD tuition fees for three years (subject to satisfactory academic performance) and will provide a £900 per annum research training support grant (RTSG) to help support the PhD researcher.

Applicants who already hold a doctoral degree or who have been registered on a programme of research leading to the award of a doctoral degree on a full-time basis for more than one year (or part-time equivalent) are NOT eligible to apply for an award.

Please note: you will automatically be entered into the competition for the Full Award, unless you state otherwise in your application.

Department for the Economy (DFE)

The scholarship will cover tuition fees at the Home rate and a maintenance allowance of £19,000 (tbc) per annum for three years (subject to satisfactory academic performance).

This scholarship also comes with £900 per annum for three years as a research training support grant (RTSG) allocation to help support the PhD researcher.

• Candidates with pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, who also satisfy a three year residency requirement in the UK prior to the start of the course for which a Studentship is held MAY receive a Studentship covering fees and maintenance.
• Republic of Ireland (ROI) nationals who satisfy three years’ residency in the UK prior to the start of the course MAY receive a Studentship covering fees and maintenance (ROI nationals don’t need to have pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme to qualify).
• Other non-ROI EU applicants are ‘International’ are not eligible for this source of funding.
• Applicants who already hold a doctoral degree or who have been registered on a programme of research leading to the award of a doctoral degree on a full-time basis for more than one year (or part-time equivalent) are NOT eligible to apply for an award.

Due consideration should be given to financing your studies. Further information on cost of living