In response to ITP fellows seeking support to attend conferences and carry out research, the ITP offers financial assistance for fellows to attend and participate in conferences and to conduct research which will help develop professional skills and networks in the museum and heritage sector.

Conference Grants

Marwa A. Bdr El Din (Egypt, ITP Fellow 2012), Head of the Registration, Collection Management and Documentation at the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, was able to attend the 20th CRE (Current Research in Egyptology) symposium 2019 at Alcala University, Spain. Marwa was able to apply for an ITP Conference Grant to attend this conference, where she presented on The Ba houses in Ancient Egypt and networked with Egyptologists from all over the world.

In November 2019, Hayk Mkrtchyan (Armenia, ITP Fellow 2014 and Senior Fellow 2017) Chair, ICOM Armenia and Country Representative, Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe organised an event at the History Museum of Armenia.  The ITP was able to support Janet Vitmayer, Independent cultural expert (previously Chief Executive of Horniman Museum and Gardens, London) and Iain Watson, former Director of Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums travelling to Yerevan to deliver Museum Management and Leadership: Challenges and Solutions.

Ioan Oprea (Romania, ITP Fellow 2019) Conservator at National Museum of the Union Alba Iulia, was able to attend Muże.X Shaping Museum Futures international conference organised by the University of Malta, Valletta. Ioan was able to apply for an ITP Conference Grant to attend this conference and was able to make new museum connections with international delegates.

Research Grants

Fadzai Muchemwa (Zimbabwe, ITP 2017) successfully applied for an ITP Research support grant to assist research related to her MA studies. As a second year Masters student in the Arts of Africa and the Global Souths research programme in the Fine Arts department at Rhodes University in South Africa, Fadzai’s latest project focuses on interdisciplinary artist Helena Uambembe’s practice.

Fadzai’s summary of the research:

‘Uambembe’s Border War and the Search for Home is research into artist Helena Uambembe’s practice, positionality and context and how she uses these to recreate, invade and reposition the history of the 32 Battalion —the infantry Battalion of the South African Army Founded in 1975. Uambembe draws on her own history rooted in the small town of Pomfret, where she was born of Angolan parents and where her father was recruited into the 32 Battalion. In an attempt to understand her family history within the bigger context of the country’s history, Uambembe wrestles with painful memories, absences and erasures. This project will look at how her practice has been influenced by this history and how she is influencing this history as well. This is continuation of research into creatives on the move.’

Xu Yin (China, ITP 2011) and Shi Wanghuan (China, ITP 2016) received a Research Support Grant in 2021 for a collaborative project. Xu Yin is the Director of Museum Square Culture and Art and Shi Wanghuan is a Project Manager at Art Exhibitions China and this grant will support the editing and translation of a book they are currently working on; Museum Registration Methods (in progress)

Ishaq Mohammed Bello (Nigeria, ITP 2012) The Effect of Cultural Heritage on Peace Building In Nigeria: A study of National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria (in progress).