Call for Applications: Atomicalia Short-Term Visiting Fellowship 2026-2027

[Lauren O'Mahony]

Dear Colleagues,

 

Murdoch University’s School of Media and Communication is delighted to announce the launch of the Atomicalia Short-Term Visiting Fellowship scheme.

 

Please see the information below about the call for applications for fellows to work with the Atomicalia collection for 2026-2027. Applications close March 31^st, 2026.

 

Thank you and kind regards,

 

Lauren

 

 

Call for Applications: Atomicalia Short-Term Visiting Fellowship

 

Murdoch University’s School of Media and Communication seeks applications from researchers and artists outside the Perth Metropolitan area to engage with and/or undertake research related to the Atomicalia Collection. Housed in the Murdoch University Library Special Collections, the Atomicalia Collection comprises more than 2,500 objects and artefacts (both 2D and 3D) branded or directly associated with ionising radiation and nuclear energy from the early 1900s to 2025.

 

Atomicalia refers to the collection of objects and ephemera that evoke or relate to the nuclear age during the decades preceding the Manhattan Project (1941-45) and beyond the Cold War (1945 to post-1991). It encompasses a wide range of material culture, including:

• Pop culture items: toys, games, advertisements, comics, films and television, music and art and other consumer goods such as foodstuffs, apparel, toiletries that feature atomic motifs, imagery of nuclear power, or themes related to nuclear war.
• Propaganda and educational materials: government pamphlets, posters and curricula designed to inform (or misinform) the public about atomic energy, radiation, civil defence and their broader implications.
• Scientific and industrial artifacts: instruments, equipment and products from early atomic research and development, or from industries that utilized atomic technology, through to its military application and weapons deployment.

Studying atomicalia is useful for exploring how radiation, atomic energy and nuclear weaponry has been integrated into everyday life and popular consciousness. It can reveal the often contradictory messages and social semiotics embedded in these items, showing both the serious and sometimes playful or incongruous ways in which the nuclear age is presented and consumed.

 

The Fellowship is designed to support and encourage postgraduates, researchers, journalists, artists, media makers, musicians, photographers and activists to work with the collection for a particular purpose and outcome/s. 

 

As part of the Fellowship, successful applicants will be provided with a space to work in the Murdoch University library near or in the same room as items from the collection and access to the library catalogue.

 

Key dates:

• One round per year
• Applications open: February 1^st
• Deadline for Applications: March 31^st
• Decision made by early May for the Fellowship to commence between July 1^st in the year of the award and before June 30^th the following year

Eligible fellowship support:

• Travel
• Accommodation

Remuneration            

• Grants of up to A$2,500 for Australian-based applicants and up to A$5,000 for international visitors. Applications that include co-funding from other sources are strongly encouraged.
• Fellows are required to spend a minimum of one week and a maximum of four weeks accessing the collection.

 

Eligibility

Applicants must live outside the Perth Metropolitan area. Applications from those outside Western Australia are strongly encouraged.

 

Application requirements

Your curriculum vitae (4 pages maximum) and a proposal of up to 500 words outlining:

1. what specifically interests you about the collection
2. your anticipated outcome/s from the visiting fellowship (eg. published writing, creative arts project, exhibition)
3. your experience and ability to carry out the proposed work
4. preferred dates of visit
5. estimated budget including any self- or co-funding to complement the grant

 

Visiting Fellows will be expected to provide a talk or presentation to interested faculty and students from the School of Media and Communication, College of Law, Arts and Social Sciences and more widely in the university by the end of their visit. The talk will be a relaxed, collegial offering, not necessarily an academic paper, more as an overview of how the Fellow engaged with the Collection, initial reflections on their investigation and how the Collection will inform or inspire their anticipated outcome/s.

 

Once the outcome/s of the Fellowship has been published, performed, exhibited or otherwise completed, a copy or downloadable access link should be provided to the School of Media and Communication and Murdoch Library. On project publicity and outcome/s please acknowledge the Short-term Visiting Fellowship, citing the source material as “Atomicalia Collection Murdoch University”.

 

Applications and inquiries should be sent to:

Dr Lauren O’Mahony
Associate Dean of Research
School of Media and Communication

Murdoch University, Western Australia
email: L.om...@murdoch.edu.au

 

Application deadline: March 31^st, 2026.

 

 

 

 

Lauren O’Mahony

Associate Dean (Research)

School of Media and Communication

Murdoch University

Room 450.3.054, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, WA 6150

( Phone +61 8 9360 2077 | * L.om...@murdoch.edu.au |

: http://profiles.murdoch.edu.au/myprofile/lauren-omahony/

 

 

I acknowledge the Traditional Owners of Country, the Aboriginal people of the many lands that we work on and their language groups throughout Western Australia and recognise their continuing connection to the land and waters. We respect their continuing culture and the contribution they make to the life of our regions and we pay our respects to their Elders past and present.

 

CRICOS Provider Code: 00125J

 

This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please notify the sender. Please note that any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Murdoch University. Finally, the recipient should check this email and any attachments for the presence of viruses. Murdoch University accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this email.

 

 

 

[OFFICIAL]