Application materials are now available online. Purpose Postdoctoral Fellowships provide support for outstanding scholars in the early stages of their careers to pursue interpretive research projects on topics that make a substantial and original contribution to the understanding of art and its history. Candidates who hold doctoral degrees in fields outside of art history are eligible to apply if they can demonstrate that their work promises to make a substantial and original contribution to the discipline of art history. Applications for the development of basic research tools, such as computer databases or art-historical reference works, are not eligible in this category. Applicants who are employed outside the United States may apply for a shorter research period if they are unable to obtain a full year of leave, and funds will be apportioned accordingly.
Fellows pursue their research wherever necessary to complete their projects.
Although grantees are welcome to use the Getty library if their projects bring them to Los Angeles, the fellowships are nonresidential. Fellows who choose to affiliate with a university or independent research center are responsible for making their own arrangements with the host institution. Discussions with the prospective host should be initiated before the fellowship application is submitted. Funding is not available to cover institutional overhead costs. During the tenure of the fellowship, fellows may not accept other awards or grants, nor may they undertake any form of employment.