The Graduate School at Arts, Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University, in collaboration with the Novo Nordisk Foundation, invites applications for a fully funded PhD fellowship in Extraction and Aesthetics: Material Ecologies in Crafts and/or Design provided the necessary funding is available. This PhD fellowship is available as of 1 February 2027 for a period of up to three years (5+3).
It is expected that candidate awarded the PhD fellowship will be able to commence the PhD degree programme on 1 February 2027.
The project “Extraction and Aesthetics” studies how our ideas of beauty shape what we dig up, make, and throw away. Tracing “blue” across Denmark and Norway from the late 1700s to today - through Norwegian cobalt blue for porcelain and blue clay that shifted from a valued material to landfill “waste” - the research project “Extraction and Aesthetics” maps transregional routes from mines to factories to waste deposits.
The project maps these routes by studying how contemporary artists, designers, and architects have linked blue cobalt pigment and blue clay across time and place, thus bringing art history closer together with arts practice, and the past closer to the future. Apart from analysing historical and cultural contexts, the research group will also the work with the method research-by-display, using exhibitions as a research method to render material flows visible, to test interpretations in public, and to inform how such material flows might be regenerated.
The PhD Fellow within the project should develop their own case study(s) that traces either blue clay or blue cobalt pigment in a long durée time frame through analysing contemporary art, crafts, or architecture practices—focusing on either Norway and/or Denmark or transnational Nordic geographies.
Relevant applicants will have a history and theory background, preferably combined with a curatorial practice and experience with art criticism.
Enrolment and place of work
The PhD student must complete the studies in accordance with the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme at the Universities and Certain Higher Artistic Educational Institutions (PhD Order): http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
Description of the graduate school’s PhD degree programme: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/phdstudystructure/
Rules and regulations for the PhD degree programme at the Graduate School at Arts: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
The PhD fellow will be enrolled as a PhD student at the Graduate School at Arts, Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University, with the aim of completing a PhD degree at the School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University.
The PhD student will be affiliated with the PhD programme Art, Literature and Cultural Studies.
The PhD student’s place of work will be the School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University. In general, the student is expected to be present at the school on an everyday basis.
The PhD degree programme is expected to include a lengthy research stay at a foreign institution, cf. Description of the graduate school’s PhD degree programme.
School of Communication and Culture’s research programme: http://cc.au.dk/en/research/research-programmes/
5+3 programme
When you apply for a 3-year PhD fellowship (5+3), you must have completed your Master’s degree no later than 31 January 2027. Your Master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish Master’s degree.
The PhD fellow will be employed at the Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University.
The terms and conditions of employment and salary will be governed by the collective agreement for academics employed by the Danish state. The PhD fellow will be employed and remunerated in accordance with Appendix 5 of the collective agreement.
The Circular on the Collective Agreement for Academics Employed by the State between the Danish Ministry of Finance and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (Akademikerne), as well as the Protocol on Salaried PhD Fellows (Appendix 5 of the collective agreement), can be found here: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/thephddegreeprogramme/
The PhD fellow will be placed in salary group 4-8 of the academic pay scale, depending on relevant seniority-qualifying work experience acquired after completion of the Master's degree.
Salary: https://phd.arts.au.dk/4-4-part-b-and-5-3/salary-and-employment
How to apply
The application must include:
Please see a detailed description of the requirements for the application in the guide for the application facility: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/how-to-apply/
Application
If you require professional guidance regarding your application for the PhD fellowship please contact the PhD programme director at Art, Literature and Cultural Studies: http://phd.arts.au.dk/about-us/contact/
For further information, please contact Associate Professor Ingrid Halland, School of Communication and Culture, ingrid.halland@cc.au.dk.
The application can be written in both Danish and English.
All applicants must provide documentation of excellent communication skills in English which are considered essential, and you must therefore be able to read, write, and speak academic English fluently. English language requirement is comparable to a minimum of TOEFL 83 or IELTS 6.5. Please see this page for further information: http://phd.arts.au.dk/applicants/english-test/
Child protection certificate
In accordance with Ministerial Order no. 554 of 23 May 2023, Aarhus University is obliged to obtain a statement of no previous convictions in respect of children in connection with the appointment and employment of staff whose work will involve direct contact with children under the age of 15. If you, in connection with your PhD project, will be in direct contact with children under the age of 15 who are not accompanied by a parent or guardian, childcare professional or teacher, you will be covered by the requirements of the ministerial order.
If you are covered by these requirements and read Danish, please complete the section “Samtykkeerklæring” (declaration of consent) in the police form and upload the file under “Other information to consider” in the application form. You can download the form here: https://phd.arts.au.dk/fileadmin/phd.arts.au.dk/ARTS/Rules_and_forms/Boerneattest.pdf
If you are covered by these requirements and do not read Danish, please upload a brief statement with the headline “Child protection certificate needed” under the field “Other information to consider” in the application form.
Applications for the PhD fellowship and enrolment in the PhD degree programme can only be submitted via the application form in Aarhus University’s web-based facility.
Deadline for applications: 1 November 2026 at 23.59 Danish time (CET/CEST).
Reference number: 2026-12
During the assessments, Aarhus University can conduct interviews with selected applicants.
