The British Society of Aesthetics exists to promote
the study, research and discussion of aesthetics and the fine arts from a
philosophical perspective. The Special Project Fund is intended to foster
projects that support the Society in fulfilling these broad aims, rather than
primarily supporting the research goals of individual applicants. Specifically, it is
designed to encourage projects that both: i. engage with constituencies outside
the philosophical aesthetics community, narrowly conceived, and ii. have
significant philosophical content and/or advance philosophical understanding of their specific field or object of
enquiry.
As such, the Special Project Fund is designed to
reward innovation in promoting the aims of the Society. It is not intended to
facilitate bidding for more money for conferences than is possible through the
BSA’s small grants scheme.
1. Supporting the Aims of
the Society
Projects may
promote aesthetics in a wide variety of ways. A non-exhaustive, indicative list
might include:
i. attracting students and faculty from a wide range
of backgrounds to work on topics in aesthetics;
ii.
raising the
profile of aesthetics either within or without the discipline of philosophy;
iii.
fostering
connections between aesthetics and other areas of philosophy or other
disciplines;
iv.
engaging with
first order artistic practices and other forms of cultural expression;
v. promoting dialogue between diverse traditions in
aesthetics;
vi.
engaging
various non-academic partners, e.g. arts media and institutions among others;
vii.
engaging with
public debates in the life of the culture more generally;
viii.
exploring
the philosophical justifications for public funding of the arts;
ix.
developing
innovative teaching programmes (such as summer schools) in aesthetics;
x. generating new research tools and exploiting new
media for promoting and disseminating aesthetics.
2. Duration of Awards
Funding may be
sought for projects of diverse length, from a few days or weeks up to a year or
longer, or for pilot or multi-stage projects, subject to renewal on successful
completion of early stages.
3. Assessment Indicators:
Applications will
be assessed by the BSA’s executive committee in consultation with external
readers, as required. In assessing applications, the Society will consider:
i. The project’s
innovation and creativity in promoting the aims of the Society.
ii. The ambition
and achievability of its stated goals and outcomes.
iii. Its likelihood
of raising awareness of aesthetics beyond the existing parameters of the
discipline.
iv. Its ability to
engage a range of non-aestheticians and/or non-philosophers.
v. The extent to
which it will advance existing debates or generate new lines of enquiry.
vi. Promotion of
diversity and early career researchers.
The BSA does not
expect every application to tick all of these boxes, or to fulfil those it does
meet to the same extent, but projects will be expected to meet a number of
them. The overriding consideration will be innovation and potential in
promoting the broad aims of the Society.
4. Eligibility:
Anyone who is a
current member of the BSA is eligible to apply as the principal applicant. Not
everyone involved or every applicant need be a member of the Society. Not all
applicants need be UK based, but the project should interface with and be of
some benefit to UK aesthetics.
5. Application procedure
The application is
a two-stage process:
Stage I:
Initial
applications are a 2pp max double spaced letter of intent (size 12 font)
outlining in summary form the intended project and specifying the funding
category to be bid for (A: up to £5000; B: up to £10,000; C: up to £15,000).
This should be sent to the Society's administrator:
admin@british-aesthetics.org by the principal applicant whose covering email must include full contact details and BSA membership number. No
additional attachments or appendices will be accepted or read, and if submitted
risk disqualifying the project. Letters of intent that do not correspond to the
formatting constraints will also be disqualified.
At least half of
the 2pp should be devoted to the substance of your proposal. You should also
detail your time frame, collaborators and include a schematic budget explaining
your choice of funding category. On the basis of this initial letter the
Society will invite full applications if appropriate. The Society reserves the
right to specify a different funding band on the basis of the initial letter as
a condition of applying.
Please note: decisions taken by the executive committee at
each stage are final, and the Society cannot enter into correspondence with, or
provide feedback to, either prospective or disappointed applicants.
Stage II:
Applicants invited
to submit a full proposal on the basis of their letter of intent will be asked
to submit a more detailed ‘Case for Support’, detailing how the proposed
project fulfils the scheme’s aims.
This will very in
length, up to 3000 words max, depending on the amount of funding sought and the
complexity of the project. A word limit will be specified in the invitation to
submit a full proposal. Full proposals should minimally include following:
i. Names, positions
and affiliations of all applicants
ii. Project title
and duration
iii. Project aims
and objectives, and milestones if any
iv. Project
description: what, how, why, when
v. Statement of how
the project meets the assessment indicators and thereby advances broad aims of
the Society.
vi. List of events
and outcomes, including dates and locations of all projected events
vii. Detailed
budget, including all additional sources of funding (The budget need not be
included in word count.)
6. Application Deadlines and Time line:
1 September for
initial letters. The Society will aim to respond within 4-6 weeks.
1 March for full
applications. The Society aims to notify by 1 May.
Successful
applicants should aim to begin their project during the following academic
year. If the initial letter is submitted on Sept 1 2011, it should specify a
start date between 1 Sept 2012 and 1 May 1 2013.)
7. Additional documentation (stage II only)
i. Include short
form (2pp max) CVs for all applicants. If specific named partners are essential
to the success of the project, please include a brief statement of their
agreement/support.
ii. Please provide
the names of 2 referees whom the Society has your permission to approach
regarding the application. At least one referee should be arm's length (not a
current or past colleague, co-author, student, or supervisor). The Society
reserves the right to consult with additional anonymous referees.
8. Reporting, Accountability and Requirements
A brief 2pp report
on completion of the project will be required, detailing how the aims and
objectives were met.
If a project of
more than a year’s duration is approved, interim annual progress reports will
also be required.
Successful
applicants will be required to advertise the Society in all relevant
documentation, including online where appropriate. A virtual BSA logo is
available here:
http://www.british-aesthetics.org/uploads/bsa.jpg