Frances Blakemore & Griffith Way Intern, Japanese & Korean Art

Spring Quarter 2025

Application Deadline: December 16th, 2024

For Master’s and PhD students enrolled at University of Washington

Fields of study include East Asian art and Chinese, Japanese, or Korean art history

Quarterly stipend estimated at $2,863

20 hours per week, for 12 weeks during Spring 2025 Academic Quarter

OVERVIEW

Seattle Art Museum is committed to offering meaningful career development opportunities to graduate and advanced undergraduate students at the University of Washington. The Blakemore Foundation supports our goal of furthering scholarship in Asian art and culture by generously sponsoring the Frances Blakemore & Griffith Way Internship Program. These internships enable students at the University of Washington to gain professional research experience, work directly with SAM’s East Asian art collection, and participate in major exhibition and publication projects.

The unwavering goal of this program is to provide promising students of Asian art and Asian studies with outstanding opportunities to intern at a top ranked Asian art museum. The internship program furthers the Blakemore Foundation’s mission of advancing the study of Asian art and culture by fostering new scholarship in the field.

Under the mentorship of SAM’s Asian art curators, interns will gain intimate knowledge about the day-to-day responsibilities of a curator, enhance their knowledge of Asian art, and gain practical experience in an area directly related to their studies. All interns in this program will have opportunities to work with the Gardner Center for Asian Art and Ideas (CAAI) and network internationally with top scholars in their field, to plan and implement scholarly programs and symposia, and to engage the public through gallery talks and docent training presentations.

Frances Blakemore & Griffith Way Intern for Japanese & Korean Art

This intern will work closely with Dr. Aaron Rio, Tateuchi Foundation Curator for Japanese & Korean Art, to complete detailed cataloging for the Japanese and Korean art collections at Seattle Asian Art Museum. This intern will primarily focus on cataloging a small subset of the collection which relates to their own specific academic interests.

Please note: The scope of this project may adjust based on intern’s academic interests and skill set, and a strong knowledge of Japanese or Korean art history is required. No prior experience with museum collections or databases is required.

EXPECTED TIME COMMITMENT

The internship period is for the Spring quarter of the 2024-2025 academic year. The expectation is that this intern will work 20 hours per week.

COMPENSATION

Interns will receive a quarterly stipend through the University of Washington equivalent to a Level 2 UW graduate teaching assistant rate, estimated at $8,589 ($2,863 per month for pay periods running through Autumn 2024, Winter 2025, or Spring 2025).

Each internship will include a waiver of tuition and most fees for the quarter, including the resident operating fee, the building fee, and the technology fee.

ELIGIBILITY

All candidates are required to be active students at University of Washington during the full term of their internship, and must have completed at least two art history classes in Chinese, Japanese, or Korean art prior to applying.

Graduate students currently enrolled at University of Washington in the Art History or Henry M. Jackson School’s Asian Studies departments are preferred.

Students enrolled in other UW programs will also be considered, including those skilled in East Asian languages or experienced with the study of material culture.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Accurately classify, describe, and catalog a selection Japanese or Korean art objects from SAAM’s permanent collection, following provided standards.

Research provenance, exhibition history, and related data for individual art objects. This may include accessing internal object files or translating artist names, labels, and seals from physical objects.

Review established standards for descriptive cataloging and apply those standards to new records in SAM’s collections management database (TMS).

Complete a one-page reflection, blog post, or interview about your internship experience.

Attend Enrichment Sessions, informational interviews, and check-ins as available.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES REQUIRED

Strong knowledge of Japanese or Korean art and art history is required.

Ability to accurately classify, describe, and record information about a work of art to a high level of detail.

Some familiarity with descriptive cataloging best practices or museum collections databases is preferred, but not required. Training with SAM’s collection management system (TMS) will be provided.

Knowledge of Japanese or Korean language is preferred. Alternative skills include proficiency in Classical Japanese or Chinese, experience with seal scripts, or experience translating from Classical Chinese, Kanbun, or Classical Japanese into English.

Demonstrated proficiency in general computer use, including Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint) and the internet.

Ability to ask for help and accept supervision and evaluation of your work.

Ability to work with others professionally and tactfully.

Ability to adhere to museum policies and support management decisions in a positive, professional manner.

APPLICATION PROCESS

All application materials are due by December 16, 2024. This includes:

Blakemore internship application (attached below, or submitted online)

Resume

Personal statement explaining your reasons for applying for the Blakemore Internship. Statement should include:

What you feel you can contribute to the department in which you are applying

What you hope to gain from the experience

Writing sample (10 pages max)

Current transcript (Unofficial transcripts are allowed)

Please note: Letters of Recommendation are NOT required for the Frances Blakemore and Griffith Way Internships Program, but are welcome.

Online applications are only accepted through the SAM Careers page at or by email to [email protected]

Seattle Art Museum (SAM) is committed to ensuring that all employees and volunteers enjoy a respectful, inclusive, and welcoming workplace. SAM is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, creed, color, national origin, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, honorably discharged veteran or military status, retaliation or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability. The Seattle Art Museum will consider applicants who may need a reasonable accommodation to perform the essential functions/duties. Please contact the Human Resources Department at for additional information or to request reasonable accommodations for the application or interview process.

SAM is dedicated to racial equity and strives for employees, volunteers, and interns who are passionate, qualified, and offer diverse perspectives. SAM prioritizes racial equity in the workplace because we know that people of color are the most impacted when it comes to inequities. We are particularly interested in engaging with historically under-represented groups in the museum field as we strive to be inclusive and equitable. SAM is responsive to cultural communities and experiences, and our strategic plan goals address the role art plays in empowering social justice and structural change to promote equity in our society.

We encourage you to submit an application, even if your experience doesn’t feel like a 100% match with the position. We know applying for a job can be intimidating, and research tells us that womxn and folks of color are less likely to apply if they don't see themselves meeting every single qualification. We encourage you to apply, even if you feel unsure about whether you meet every requirement in this job post. You could very well be a great fit for this role or others.