Is There an Art History Doctor in the House?

By Jessica Stark

Houston’s art world recently grew a little healthier thanks to a new art history doctoral program at Rice. Supported by a $10 million grant from the Brown Foundation that will be used to fund graduate fellowships and foster a permanent collaborative research partnership with the Menil Collection and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, it is the only such program in Houston.

“This wonderful grant from the Brown Foundation will enable Houston and Rice to take an important step toward the shared goal of assuring that our city is a great center for the arts and humanities,” said Rice President David Leebron. “It will enable the university to continue to foster deep collaborative relationships with our neighboring cultural institutions, especially the outstanding art museums of the city.”

Students in the new doctoral program will study under scholar curators from the Menil Collection and the MFAH as well as with faculty in Rice’s Department of Art History. Collaborative research between the department and the museums will help make the program among the most competitive in the nation.

The funding also enhances the Museum-Collaborative Partnership, which began as a pilot project in 2005 with the help of Suzanne Deal Booth ’77. The partnership has facilitated the appointment of fellows to teach in the Department of Visual Arts, a postdoctoral fellowship in art history and two new positions in the Rice Gallery. It also has jointly sponsored lectures and publications with the Menil Collection.

The Ph.D. program, in conjunction with the partnership, reinforces Houston as a destination for serious art history scholarship and will expand the city’s reputation as an artistic hub as graduates go on to become teachers and curators across the country and expose others to the depth of Houston’s offerings. Other graduates may choose to put down roots and become part of Houston’s vibrant community of gallery owners, museum educators, donors, independent scholars and faculty.

The doctoral program will benefit the museums by providing them with scholars and research to help support the development of their collections. The scholars also will challenge the museums to continue to rethink emerging areas of importance in photography, Latin American art and American art.