Curatorial Research Fellowship 2027

Charles Wallace India Trust, Victoria and Albert Museum and Alkazi Foundation for the Arts

Location: Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington, London, UK
Fellowship period: From April 2027
Duration: Three–six months
Stipend: £1,600 per month
Travel support: £800 towards international return airfare
Additional support: Visa expenses covered
Application deadline: 7 November 2026
Award announced: February 2027

The Charles Wallace India Trust, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Alkazi Foundation for the Arts invite applications for the third Visiting Curatorial Research Fellowship.

The residential fellowship enables a mid-career cultural producer from India to conduct original research within the V&A’s Photography Section and contribute to its ongoing projects.

About the Fellowship

The programme supports humanities-led research engaging with the V&A’s global photography collections.

Applicants should propose a focused project with clearly defined objectives and intended outcomes, such as an exhibition, publication or article. Proposals exploring connections between the Indian subcontinent and the wider world are particularly encouraged, although research is not restricted to a specific geographical framework.

The selected Fellow will be expected to demonstrate how the residency will develop their practice and contribute to pedagogical or practice-based approaches to photographic research and curating.

Research

Proposed projects should:

• Engage directly with the V&A’s photography collections;
• Be achievable within a period of three–six months;
• Demonstrate knowledge of photographic history, contemporary lens-based practices or a related field;
• Explain the project’s principal research questions and intended outcomes;
• Show how the fellowship will advance the applicant’s professional or research practice;
• Address the project’s educational or practice-oriented potential; and
• Be submitted in English.

Ongoing research projects are eligible, provided that the proposed fellowship would make a substantial new contribution to their development.

Within three months of returning to India, the Fellow will be expected to submit an article arising from the research. This may be published by the participating organisations.

Eligibility

Applicants must:

• Be Indian citizens domiciled in India;
• Be aged 25–45;
• Be mid-career cultural producers;
• Be available to undertake a three–six-month residency beginning in April 2027; and
• Have the knowledge and experience required to complete the proposed research.

The fellowship is open to artists, scholars, writers, editors and curators working independently or through an institution.

Applications from collectives and submissions containing multiple project proposals are not eligible.

The fellowship does not support exhibition catalogues or monographs associated with another institution or commercial gallery. It also cannot fund infrastructure, equipment or the ongoing operation of cultural facilities, archives or collections.

Support

The selected Fellow will receive:

• A monthly stipend of £1,600;
• An £800 contribution towards international return airfare;
• Visa expenses covered by the Alkazi Foundation;
• Access to the V&A’s collections and Photography Section;
• Opportunities to contribute to ongoing departmental projects;
• Support from the participating organisations’ professional networks; and
• Potential editorial assistance with the resulting article.

The Fellow will be responsible for arranging their accommodation, meals and local transportation using the fellowship funding.