Jackman Scholars-in-Residence ~ The Art and Science of Museum Objects and Seeing Potential: Asking/Investigating/Exhibiting the Malcove Collection

Welcome to the UTSC Library!

Dear JHI Scholars in Residence - Welcome to UTSC!

My name is Paulina Rousseau, and I am here to help you with all of your library and research needs!

Jackman Scholars-in-Residence (SiR) is an intensive 4-week residency in humanities and humanistic social-science research for upper-year undergraduates. In collaboration with your professors, the library is here to help you and give you the opportunity to acquire advanced research skills and experience while collaborating with an interdisciplinary and intellectually vibrant community of peers, professors, and research professionals.

In addition to the research that you will be conducting, you will also help to build a digital research component that will be accessible to all, and I am here to help you do that!

Alen Hadzovic (UTSC Physical & Environmental Sciences) The Art and Science of Museum Objects

This project investigates selected art objects from a multidisciplinary perspective. Students with background and interests in the science and history of technology, materials, commerce, and art will learn about the techniques, methodologies, materials, and processes employed in making these objects. Research questions may include chemical composition, material changes over time, social symbolism of material, and historical production. The art objects come from the Malcove Collection in the UofT’s Art Museum. Students will collaborate with Prof. Webster’s project “Seeing Potential: Asking/Investigating/Exhibiting the Malcove Collection,” and contribute to a technical art history component of a planned Malcove collection exhibition.

Erin Webster (UTSC Arts, Culture and Media) Seeing Potential: Asking/Investigating/Exhibiting the Malcove Collection

Students will research objects and ideas for a physical and digital exhibition of selected pieces from the Malcove Collection, a former private collection of historical material ranging across diverse cultures, time periods and materials. Scholars will choose an object for research focus, learn to read curatorial files, become familiar with current exhibition theory and practice, determine and compose appropriate media and content for communicating their research, and learn to present challenging objects and research ideas, questions and processes in exhibition form. Further, students will collaborate with Professor Hadzovic’s SiR project (see above), incorporating scientific exploration of the materials and techniques used in these objects into a technical art history section of the exhibition and participating in an innovative and exciting multi-disciplinary research process.