Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art

The Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art contributes to the professional enhancement of specialists in the Asian art curatorial field through exchange between the United States and Asia. Held every other year, the fellowship supports two emerging contemporary art curators, one from Asia, one from the United States, with a unique residency opportunity for a period of up to three months with the Asian Art Museum’s Contemporary Art Department, under the purview of Abby Chen, senior associate curator and head of Contemporary Art. Fellows will contribute to the ongoing projects and events in the Contemporary Art Department by offering their insights and perspectives into current trends in the contemporary art world. The fellowship also includes a stipend to support a study tour for each fellow’s research, professional interests, and network building.

The 2024 fellows will work within the Asian Art Museum’s Practice Institute. Fellows will report to the Museum’s inaugural Assistant Curator of Games and Technology Cheng Xu, whose new exhibition RAD (Research And Development) opens in January 2024. Fellows will be chosen to support the following program areas:

New Art Practices – Guidelines

The Asian Art Museum’s recently expanded contemporary art program is seeks guidance in developing criteria for presenting and new practices. Looking broadly at what other museums and collecting organizations have developed, the Museum would like to investigate and begin defining the qualities that will ensure an artwork speaks not only to the moment but will endure. New practices here encompass multimedia artworks, theater sound, performances, digital (especially AI generated) artworks, archives, community engagement, as well as nontraditional works that may exist independent of gallery spaces. The output of this research may include publications, organized talks, and a curated index of artists, artworks, and institutions.

Interactive Experiences and Interpretive Technology – Video Games

The Museum plans a major exhibition in collaboration with visionary game designer Jenova Chen in Spring of 2025. In support of the current RAD “laboratory,” we are looking for a curatorial perspective as we develop the hardware and software to allow audiences to engage in the rich sensory experiences of Chen’s newest immersive world. The fellow will work closely with interpretive experts, game designers, engineers, and other specialists to beta test with diverse user groups, synthesize findings, and inform iterations on these interactions. Experience in building interactive prototypes and an interest in the fields of gaming, digital design, and engineering are not required, but valued. A desire to interact with the public will be vital to success.

Eligibility

  • We take an expansive approach to the concept of “curator,” and welcome applicants from within and outside institutional museums.
  • Candidates should show capacity for connecting creative ideas, people, and artworks. We welcome applicants with experience outside of brick-and-mortar exhibitions.
  • Ideal candidates will demonstrate leadership capacity, initiative, self-direction, strong communication skills, and the ability to collaborate with diverse stakeholders.
  • Fully conversant in English.
  • Able to commit to a three-month residency at the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco in the summer of 2024.
  • From the United States, Asia, or the Pacific Islands.

Learn more about the 2024 program

 

Applications Open for the 2024 Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art

San Francisco, January 29, 2024

News Post

In partnership with the Asian Art Museum, The Asia Foundation announces a call for applications for the 2024 Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art, a program supporting exchange between diverse, emerging curatorial voices focusing on Asian or Asian American art. The application period opens on January 31 and closes on March 3, with… Read more

Ferry building in San Francisco. 

Asia Foundation Announces the 2022 Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellows

San Francisco, May 10, 2022

News Post

The Asia Foundation and the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco are pleased to announce Arlette Quynh-Anh Tran and Do Nguyen Tuong Vi (Vicky Do) as the 2022 Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellows in Asian Art. Arlette Quynh-Anh Tran is the curator and director of Post Vidai, a unique and significant collection of Vietnamese contemporary art based in G… Read more

Ferry building in San Francisco. 

Call for Applications: Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art

San Francisco, January 24, 2022

News Post

In partnership with the Asian Art Museum, The Asia Foundation announces a call for applications for the 2022 Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art, a program supporting exchange between diverse, emerging curatorial voices focusing on Asian or Asian American art. Applications will be accepted from January 31 to March 1, 2022, with th… Read more

 

Virtual Event – Don’t Mess With Me: Combating Gender-based Violence in South Asia Through Art and Engagement

San Francisco, Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Events Post

Co-hosted in partnership with the Asian Art Museum in celebration of the Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellowship in Asian Art. A conversation with Indian artist Jas Charanjiva about her work “Don’t Mess with Me,” currently on view at the Asian Art Museum. A panel discussed sexual violence against women in South Asia and how artists and organizatio… Read more

Ferry building in San Francisco. 

The Asia Foundation Names 2020 Margaret Williams Memorial Fellow

San Francisco, October 8, 2020

Program Snapshot Post

The Asia Foundation announces the selection of Thuy Tran, a specialist in contemporary art and community-based engagement, as a 2020 Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow. She is an alum of Georgetown University and has received several grants and fellowships for her work focused on social justice, equity, and community dialogue including the Ebony… Read more

 

Leading Chinese Archaeologist Offers Glimpse into Life of Han Dynasty King

January 13, 2016

Blog Post

In November, preeminent Chinese archaeologist, Li Zebin, gave a presentation at The Asia Foundation in San Francisco about the excavation he helped lead on what is considered one of the most important archaeological discoveries in China in recent years…

 

Nu Mra Zan and Mie Mie Thet N’we named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellows

November 1, 2015

Program Snapshot Post

Ms. Nu Mra Zan, Consultant, Ministry of Culture, Myanmar and Ms. Mie Mie Thet N’we, Deputy Director, Yangon National Museum, observed various aspects of museum management, curatorship, and outreach during their professional affiliation at the Asian Art Museum. This core activity was supplemented with site visits to several smaller ethnic and commun… Read more

 

Li Ze Bin named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

November 1, 2015

News, Program Snapshot Post

Mr. Li Ze Bin, Deputy Director, Institute of Archaeology, Nanjing Museum, a specialist on the archaeology of Han and Tang Dynasties, examined the Asian Art Museum’s famed collection of ancient Chinese Art, and visited Bay Area museums during his three-week fellowship. As head of an archaeology team which excavated the Dayunshan royal mausoleum of t… Read more

 

The Second Asian Art Forum for Museum Directors: “Classical to Contemporary/Local to Global”

July 1, 2014

Program Snapshot Post

The Margaret F. Williams Memorial fellowship in Asian Art, along with Brayton Wilbur, Jr. Memorial Fellowships in Asian Art, supported the participation of eight museum directors from Asia and the U.S. in the second biennial forum. Organized by the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the discussions focused on ways of making museums more relevant to… Read more

 

Timothy Rub named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

April 28, 2013

Program Snapshot Post

Mr. Timothy Rub, Director and CEO of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, met with representatives of major museums in China, Japan and Korea on his fellowship to discuss cooperation and exchanges with the Philadelphia Museum of Art and plans for the second Director’s Forum at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. Referring to the museum’s significant… Read more

 

Mr. Tsuda Tetsuei and Dr. Sarai Mai named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellows

January 1, 2012

Program Snapshot Post

Mr. Tsuda Tetsuei, Head of the Art Research Materials and Dr. Sarai Mai, Senior Researcher at The National Institute of Cultural Properties in Tokyo, conducted research on two eighth-century hollow lacquer sculptures, Bonten and Taishakuten in the Asian Art Museum’s collection during their two-week fellowship. The researchers discovered that many o… Read more

 

Fellows in the First Asian Art Forum for Museum Directors

November 1, 2011

Program Snapshot Post

In November, 2011, representatives of important museums of Asian art from Asia and the U.S. met in San Francisco for a pioneering Directors Forum organized by The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. The Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellows in Asian Art Program supported the participation of East Asian museum directors in the Forum, where they share… Read more

 

Li He named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

June 1, 2010

Program Snapshot Post

A leading specialist in Chinese ceramics, Curator of Chinese Art at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco Ms. Li He’s fellowship enabled her to attend a conference on early white-glazed porcelain in Henan, China, organized jointly by the Henan Provincial Museum and the Palace Museum in Beijing; followed by a symposium in Taipei, Taiwan on the colle… Read more

 

Jay Xu named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

November 28, 2009

Program Snapshot Post

Prior to becoming Director of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco in 2008, Dr. Jay Xu was Pritzker Chairman of the Department of Asian and Ancient Art at The Art Institute of Chicago. He is a dedicated scholar of Chinese antiquities and a curator committed to sharing his extensive knowledge of Asian art with a wide audience. The award of the Marg… Read more

 

Lee Nae-ok named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

July 28, 2009

Program Snapshot Post

As the second Fellow from Asia, Dr. Lee Nae-ok, Head of the Asian Art Dept, the National Museum of Korea, and Director of the Daegu National Museum, collaborated with Dr. Cheeyun Kwon, the Asian Art Museum’s Curator of Korean Art in reviewing the Korean collection. His three-week affiliation aided preparations for a planned rotation of the exhibiti… Read more

 

Yoko Woodson named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

June 28, 2009

Program Snapshot Post

The first recipient of the fellowship, Dr. Yoko Woodson, the Asian Art Museum’s Curator of Japanese Art, traveled to Japan for several weeks. During her visit, she worked with curators at Eisei Bunko Museum of the Hosokawa Family, examining the collection and helping to identify objects for display in the Asian Art Museum’s 2009 exhibit, Lords of t… Read more

 

Yasuhiro Nishioka named Margaret F. Williams Memorial Fellow

June 28, 2009

Program Snapshot Post

Deputy Director Emeritus of the Tokyo National Museum Mr. Yasuhiro Nishioka, an internationally renowned specialist in Chinese lacquers, was the first Margaret F. Williams Fellow from Asia. Mr. Nishioka conducted research on the Asian Art Museum’s extensive collection of Chinese lacquer ware, one of three major collections in the U.S.. The Museum p… Read more