Conservation Fellowship and Scientific Research Fellowship: Senior Fellow Grant

Conservation Fellowship and Scientific Research Fellowship: Senior Fellow Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Metropolitan Museum Of Art
Amount: Up to US $63,000
Last Updated: September 30, 2025

Summary

The Conservation Fellowship and Scientific Research Fellowship at The Metropolitan Museum of Art offers a unique opportunity for senior fellows to engage in significant research projects utilizing the museum's extensive collection. With a focus on conservation science, the program encourages innovative approaches to the study and preservation of art. Each fellow receives a stipend of $57,000 along with funding for travel, fostering a collaborative environment for scholars from various backgrounds to expand their academic horizons.

Overview

Mission Statement The Metropolitan Museum of Art collects, studies, conserves, and presents significant works of art across time and cultures in order to connect all people to creativity, knowledge, ideas, and one another. Fellowships Applicants come from diverse backgrounds and nationalities and vary widely in their perspectives and training. Each year, The Met creates a close knit community of scholars whose individual interests collectively illuminate the Museum's collection of artworks spanning 5,000 years of human creativity. Exploring new avenues of research in the history of art and visual culture, education, public practice, and critical theory, fellows expand, challenge, and actively redefine the very limits and purview of these disciplines by introducing fresh ideas drawn from philosophy, anthropology, museum studies, historiography, conservation, and the material sciences. Conservation Fellowship and Scientific Research Fellowship There are two types of Conservation Fellowships: junior and senior. Junior fellows work closely with Met staff to receive training in scientific research and conservation practices. Senior fellows work on a specific research project that makes use of the Museum's collection and/or resources. Primary Areas of Research Interest Our focus is the preservation, storage, display, and study of The Met collection and its related materials. The following are primary areas of interest for the department, although applications in all topics related to art-conservation science will be considered. PhotographsThe study of materials and techniques of nineteenth- and twentieth-century photographs such as, but not limited to, silver, platinum, palladium, satista, salted paper prints, and daguerreotypes, and how these affect their permanence.Research on deterioration processes such as silver mirroring and others caused by exposure to light and other environmental factors.Dyes and organic pigmentsAnalysis and identification of dyes and organic pigments used in historic and artistic objects and the degradation products by liquid chromatography—mass spectrometry (LC/MS).Topics related to analysis of dye and organic pigment such as development of extraction methods of organic lakes, or differentiating natural dyes containing similar color compounds, are also included.Preventive Conservation ScienceThese topics focus on understanding the environmental factors that affect works of art. Examples include but are not limited to the following: display, storage, and building materials testing using advanced analytical techniques (GC/MS, ion chromatography, HPLC) for the safe display and transport of art, including the analysis of volatiles and their effect on inorganic and organic artwork; monitoring of and determining acceptable thresholds for volatiles and urban pollutants; and the effect of modern pesticides on art.Organic MediaThese topics focus on the development and application of mass spectrometric (GC/MS, MALDI) and immunological techniques for the identification of natural (biological) and synthetic organic materials in cultural heritage. These materials include proteins, polysaccharides, resins, oils, and waxes, as well as modern paints, coatings, and plastics. Research on degradation mechanisms and chemical interactions are of high interest.Other topics include: the interactions of pigments with biological binders; immunological techniques applied to proteins and polysaccharides; and the application of MALDI techniques—including imaging—to the study of organic colorants, plastics, waxes, lipids, polysaccharides, and proteins.Inorganic MediaThe application of non-invasive micro-XRD analysis to the characterization of crystalline phases in archaeological objects and works of art such as, but not limited to, pigment particles, ceramic bodies and enamel layers, colorants and opacifiers in glass, metal objects and inlays, objects carved from rocks, semi-precious and precious stones, and corrosion and weathering products that form on and within the surface of historic and modern works of art Fellowship Period The fellowship period is September 1 through August 31. All fellowships must take place within this period. All fellows must be in residence at The Met for the entirety of their 12-month fellowship period. Funding Senior fellows receive a stipend of $57,000. Fellows also receive up to an additional $6,000 for travel (maximum of six weeks).

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. Recent master's graduates, PhD candidates, postdoctoral scholars, and senior scientists and researchers are eligible to apply.Senior fellows are well-established professionals with at least eight years of experience in the field and a proven publication record, or those who have their PhD in hand by the deadline date.In the past, fellows in our Conservation Departments and the Department of Scientific Research have had backgrounds in fields including, but not limited to:ConservationConservation SciencesChemistry or Physical ChemistryBotanyEarth Sciences or GeologyThe Fellowship Program is open to and regularly hosts international scholars. However, due to changes in travel and visa restrictions, which have fluctuated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Museum cannot guarantee that international scholars will be able to travel to New York for the fellowship period. Please consult the U.S. Department of State and New York State websites for updates on the current status of international and interstate travel. While we will make reasonable efforts to accommodate future unforeseen changes, we are unable to modify program dates on an individual basis.Applicants may only apply for one type of fellowship per application cycle. The only exception to this is the History of Art and Visual Culture Fellowship, which can be applied to concurrently with the Leonard A. Lauder Fellowship and the Andrew W. Mellon Curatorial Fellowship.

Ineligibility

We are unable to accept proposals for exhibitions, symposia, or similar programs. Applications in which such a project is the major objective of the proposal will be disqualified.