PhD position on queer writers and artists of the European HIV/AIDS crisis

With this PhD you will join the NWO Vidi project Fabulous Subjects: Queer Intellectuals and their Archives, participating actively in the intellectual life of a research group.

Your job
In this PhD, you will map and study the archive of queer art and literature produced during the HIV/AIDS crisis in Europe in the 1980s and 1990s. You will build on existing scholarship on the cultural politics of HIV/AIDS in the Unites States (e.g., Crimp 1988; Hallas 2009; Triechler 1999), contribute to an emerging body of scholarship on various European contexts (e.g., Gordon 2025; Idier 2019; Mellink and Amelsvoort 2024), and focus on a selection of personal and movement archives. By mapping and studying this material, you will identify the specific function played by queer artists and writers – as “organic intellectuals” – during the HIV/AIDS crisis in Europe.

The research involves a collaboration with the European HIV/AIDS Archive (EHAA) in Berlin, which was established to produce a ‘queer counter-memory’ (Dziuban et al. 2022) of HIV/AIDS in Europe. EHAA holds a collection of oral histories accompanied by selected movement material, photographs, policy documents, and artworks.

This PhD is part of the larger NWO Vidi project Fabulous Subjects: Queer Intellectuals and their Archives, whose twofold goal is to develop a theory of the queer organic intellectual while identifying the specific features of queer intellectuals’ archives. The project focuses on the place of intellectuals in European queer and trans communities and movements from the 1970s to the present.

Your main duties and responsibilities include:

• developing an independent research plan based on the general framework of the PhD position and in alignment with the broader Vidi project, including the identification of relevant case studies;
• conducting high-quality empirical research (e.g., archival research and cultural analysis;
• contributing to the development of a theory of the queer intellectual in close collaboration with the research team (including the PI and the Postdoc);
• producing a PhD dissertation, as well as one peer-reviewed article and one chapter for a final edited volume.;
• presenting research findings at international conferences and workshops.;
• supporting the organization of academic events (e.g. a summer school and final conference);
• engaging in practices of public engagement and research dissemination in close collaboration with heritage institutions involved in the project;
• participating actively in the intellectual life of the research group, including seminars, reading groups, and collaborative writing processes.

The ideal candidate for this PhD position must have:

• a Master’s degree in a relevant scientific discipline in the Humanities or Social Sciences, including but not limited to Gender Studies, Cultural Studies, Literary Studies, or History;
• solid familiarity with queer theory;
• preferably previous knowledge of the topic and experience of archival research and cultural analysis;
• an excellent command of English and at least another European language;
• strong academic writing skills.

• a fulltime position, initially for 18 months with an extension to a total of four years upon a successful assessment in the first year, and with the specific intent that it results in a doctorate within this period;
• a gross monthly salary between € 3,059 and € 3,881 in the case of full-time employment (38 hours per week), salary scale P under the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO NU));
• 8% holiday pay and 8.3% year-end bonus;
• a pension scheme, partially paid parental leave and flexible terms of employment based on the CAO NU.

In addition to the terms of employment laid down in the CAO NU, Utrecht University also offers a range of its own schemes for employees. This includes arrangements for professional development, various types of leave, and options for sports and cultural activities. You can also tailor your employment conditions through our Terms of Employment Options Model. In this way, we encourage you to keep investing in your personal and professional development.

For more information, please visit Working at Utrecht University.

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The Faculty of Humanities has around 7,000 students and 1,100 staff members. It comprises four knowledge domains: Philosophy and Religious Studies, History and Art History, Media and Culture Studies, and Languages, Literature and Communication. With its research and education in these fields, the Faculty aims to contribute to a better understanding of the Netherlands and Europe in a rapidly changing social and cultural context. The enthusiastic and committed colleagues and the excellent amenities in the historical city centre of Utrecht, where the faculty is located, contribute to an inspiring working environment.

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Our department of Media and Culture Studies has a staff with a variety of backgrounds, skills, and views. As a department, we are committed to support our staff and their development and we foster various forms of interdisciplinary collaboration and team-based teaching and research. In our department, we study a wide range of media as well as cultural and artistic expressions, also in their intermedial relations. We interpret culture as a dynamic combination of artistic, creative, and everyday activities that people use to shape their identities, and within which social processes, structures and institutions are shaped. We welcome colleagues who can further strengthen the diversity of perspectives and backgrounds in our department.

As PhD candidate you will be member of the Institute for Cultural Inquiry (ICON) – one of the four research institutes of the Faculty of Humanities – and the interdisciplinary focus area Governing the Digital Society (GDS), which fosters the collaboration between the Departments of Media and Culture, Law, Governance, and Information Science. PhD candidates are also embedded in the Graduate School of Humanities, which offers seminars and courses to improve your academic skills.

For more information about this position, please contact Dr. Gianmaria Colpani at g.colpani@uu.nl.

Candidates for this vacancy will be recruited by Utrecht University.