University of Illinois at Chicago - Museum and Exhibition Studies

Solidarity with GEO! 💪

Get published! Fwd: Museums journal is looking for someone to review the book Art Collecting and Gifts to Museums: An Anthropology of Donations by Paul der Grijp, to be included in the next journal issue. Submissions are due on Jan. 5, 2027, 11:59 PM. Submission details and more about the journal are here.

The book questions why private collectors donate their collections, or parts of it, to museums and examines what the implications of this gift process might be.

Examining case studies from all over the map, this book emphasizes the importance of understanding the motivations behind donating from the collector’s point of view.

By splitting the book into three sections: Motivations, Museums, and Private Collectors, Van der Grijp argues that collectors donate to museums because the latter represent an imagined community, to whom those collectors would like to bestow a sacred gift.

Art Collecting and Gifts to Museums: An Anthropology of Donations is an excellent read for those who are interested in collections work, public engagement, or donor relations in museums!

If interested in reviewing, please contact Fwd: Museums at [email protected]. Tell us about your interest in the book and provide your mailing address; we’ll mail the book to you!

“Author Bio: Paul van der Grijp is Emeritus Professor in Anthropology of the University of Lyon and a former researcher of the Centre for Research and Documentation of Oceania in Marseilles and the Institute of East Asia Studies in Lyon. He conducted lengthy periods of fieldwork in the South Pacific and East-Asia.”

“Table of Contents:
Introduction;
Part I Motivations; 1 The self-enhancement motive; 2 Augmenting social status; 3 The investment motive; 4 Transmission of knowledge; Part II Museums; 5 Collection or museum; 6 Museums in east asia; 7 Gifts to museums in taiwan; 8 Founding a collection museum; 9 Museums and the imagined community; Part III Private collectors; 10 Early modern art collectors; 11 Donations by collecting artists; 12 Asian art and culture; Conclusions on donations”

Feminist Book Party!

When: Monday, March 2, 2026, 5-6:30 p.m. CST

Where: Institute for the Humanities, BSB Suite 153, 1007 W. Harrison

What: Join UIC Gender & Women’s Studies for a celebration of GWS faculty members’ new books and to spend time together in community! This event showcases a powerful range of contributions to feminist scholarship, activism, and collective liberation:

Indigenous Voices in Digital Spaces by Cindy Tekobbe
Tied Up in Tehran: Women, Social Change, and the Politics of Daily Life in Postrevolutionary Iran by Norma Claire Moruzzi
Chicago Latina Trailblazers: Testimonios of Political Activism edited by Rita D. Hernández, Leticia Villarreal Sosa, and Elena R. Gutiérrez
Radiophonic Feminisms: Latina Voices in the Digital Age of Broadcasting by Esther Díaz Martín
A Black Q***r History of the United States by C. Riley Snorton and Darius Bost
Surviving the Long Wars: Creative Rebellion at the Ends of Empire edited by Aaron Hughes, Ronak K. Kapadia, Therese Quinn, Meranda Roberts, and Amber Zora

Light refreshments and non-alcoholic drinks will be served!

Registration is strongly encouraged. Please register at go.uic.edu/gwsbooks by Wednesday, February 25, at 5 p.m. CST to assist us with our planning.

UIC Co-sponsors: Institute for the Humanities, Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy, Social Justice Initiative, Museum and Exhibition Studies, Black Studies, Latin American and Latino Studies, Political Science, Communication, Gender & Sexuality Center, Women’s Leadership and Resource Center

Please contact [email protected] with questions or concerns.

Get published this spring. Last call for submissions! Send us your art and writing. Deadline 1/5/25. Link in bio.

Congratulations, Andrea Yarbrough, MUSE ‘21!

Publish a journal with this spring seminar! Registration is open!

Register for this spring class now!

Hot spring classes! Registration is open!

Never too soon to start thinking about your spring classes! This one is open to all students at UIC. If you are interested in independent publishing it might be for you! Keep an eye on this account for more museum/culture SPR ‘26 courses!