PhD Study : Situations in Northern Irish Contemporary Painting

Summary

The proposed project takes as its starting point the paintings of English artists Rita Donagh and Ralph Lillford, both of whom made work directly related to Northern Ireland in the 1970s and 1980s. Crucially, Lillford had made regular visits to Belfast during this time, contrasting to Donagh’s relatively distanced approach, thus raising questions about the necessary proximity required for an artist to effectively and meaningfully respond to the events their work addresses.

At this same time, artists based here were also responding directly to the political and social unrest, and in 1993 the Doubleband Films documentary ‘The Trouble With Art’ brought focus to Northern Irish artists dealing with the social and political conditions of their time. As a result, the film revealed a more direct and embedded approach to artistic production, with those featured commenting on the commitment and effort required to being an artist in Northern Ireland. Twenty-seven years since the making of this film, twenty-two years since the Good Friday Agreement, and in a culture where ‘Troubles Tourism’ promotes the idea of a ‘past history’, artists in Northern Ireland continue to work in very challenging, if different, conditions.

Painting practices here are characterised as being mainly studio-based, site-responsive and environment driven, differentiating from those that are decidedly more market and gallery driven. The American painter Alex Katz describes his practice in terms of working with ‘an immediate present’, which, he argues, places his entire oeuvre in a continuous ‘present tense’.

Such a position may also suggest that painting is capable of working with a constant sense of ‘now’, linking to the theme of a recent anthology of new poets from the North of Ireland- ‘The Future Always Makes Me So Thirsty’, edited by Sinead Morrisey and Stephen Connolly (2016). Through their selection of mainly new, less published poets, many of whom have moved to Northern Ireland from elsewhere, concerns of a contemporary ‘now’ are posited as a shift away from an older generation of poets who wrote  about the past history of here. Therefore the links that can be made between painting and writing, and particularly between painters and poets, is another concern of this project, and may extend to other international contexts, for instance in the poetry of Derek Walcott responding to the paintings of Peter Doig.

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
• Research proposal of 2000 words detailing aims, objectives, milestones and methodology of the project

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.

• Completion of Masters at a level equivalent to commendation or distinction at Ulster
• 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