The Reverend Professor Jenny Gallagher MBE Artist in Residence Grant

Are you a UK based artist excited by research with library and archive collections and public engagement?

An exciting new opportunity is now available at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, inviting you to explore our dental-related library and archive collections for inspiration.

The Reverend Professor Jenny Gallagher MBE Artist in Residence Grant funds a UK resident artist interested in developing creative work inspired by the Library and Archives collections of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. This programme offers a unique opportunity to explore rich historical materials and transform your research into public‑facing artistic outcomes.

The grant is £4000, which is funding for a four-week period of research and the creation of one college-published journal article or blog post, at least one public engagement activity (e.g. workshop, lecture, masterclass) and one completed artwork donated to the Library and Archives collections.

Find out more about the grant.

The grant funds the creation of art inspired by research into the Library and Archives' Oral, Dental, and Craniofacial Surgery collections.

This grant has four themes, applicants will select one of these to focus on for their application:

Thematic content

John Menzies Campbell

Concerned with the evolution of oral health, the Menzies Campbell Collection offers a compelling journey through the science, art and culture of dentistry. Researchers can explore the history of dentistry in the 18th and 19th centuries through a unique collection: The library holds his complete collection of 417 rare books.

The archives hold “The Papers of John Menzies Campbell”. Thanks to the dedication of John and Margaret Menzies Campbell, these remarkable archive and book collections offer a rich and varied insight into the evolution of dentistry and dental care and their cultural portrayal over time.

Hunterian Collections

The Hunterian Collections are named after the 18th century surgeon anatomist John Hunter whose collection of anatomical specimens was given into the care of the Company of Surgeons (later the Royal College of Surgeons of England) in 1799. Hunter’s collection of around 14,000 specimens and preparations were cared for by curatorial staff. These staff contributed to the Archives of the College by documenting their processes, recording their decisions and reporting to the governing authorities about collections developments.

The Hunterian curatorial staff also first created and developed the library to support their work with the Hunterian Collection, which is now housed in the Hunterian Museum. The collections include all of John and William Hunter’s anatomical works, including John’s The Natural History of the Human Teeth (London, 1771), one of the seminal works of dentistry and dental anatomy.

Public health

Public health campaigns and practices represent the collective effort to prevent disease, extend life, and promote wellbeing across entire communities. Within the Library and Archives, artists will find Public Health materials relating to Dental, Oral and Craniofacial surgery that open up unexpected pathways into the history of care, the body, and society.

These collections trace how communities have sought to protect and improve health through prevention and health‑promotion initiatives, while also documenting shifting understandings of dental health. Alongside these social and medical narratives, the collections reveal the role of medical illustration in shaping scientific communication to a non-medical audience.

Conflict

The collections relating to conflict illuminate the profound ways war reshapes medical practice, humanitarian response, and technological innovation. Artists can delve into material that captures the pressures of battlefield medicine and the breakthroughs that emerged from treating patients in extreme conditions. These printed materials and records chart the development of reconstructive and aesthetic plastic surgery in response to devastating wartime injuries, revealing both clinical ingenuity and the human stories behind dental and craniofacial medical advancements.

Extensive resources on trauma and injury management include documentation of maxillofacial trauma from ballistic and blast injuries, penetrating facial wounds, craniofacial reconstruction in combat zones, and the treatment of burns and soft‑tissue damage.

The collections explore the management of traumatic injuries involving the face, as well as the unique challenges of dental and oral health in combat environments during war and after war ends. Together, these materials offer artists a powerful lens through which to examine resilience, vulnerability, and the intersection of medicine and conflict.

Eligibility and focus

Encouraging a range of new perspectives to respond to the Library and Archives collections is a key part of our engagement strategy.

You will have a degree, BTEC or Diploma in visual or applied arts at undergraduate and/or post-graduate level. You will be a professional visual, applied, or socially engaged artist. As this opportunity is designed for an early career professional, applications from artists who have not taken part in a recognised residency before will be particularly welcome, but those who have will still be eligible to apply for the grant.

Artists follow diverse career paths. We have set out broad and inclusive criteria to reflect this. By “professional”, we mean those who engage regularly in professional activity as visual, applied, and socially engaged artists, not just those who live solely on direct income from their artwork. Applications are open to those who support their practice through additional paid work or income, provided they meet the eligibility criteria. The grant is not open to artists currently enrolled in full- or part-time qualifications. You must have completed your degree/BTEC/Diploma to be considered.

Applicants must be over 18 years of age, have the legal right to work in the UK, and be full-time residents. Unfortunately, the project cannot offer visa sponsorship; you must already have the legal right to work in the UK to participate.

An invitation to take up the artist-in-residence grant will be subject to agreement to attend an induction session with library and archives staff.

Applicants must propose a project that directly engages with the Library and Archives collections. Evidence of preliminary research is strongly encouraged and will be viewed favourably during assessment.

Museum collections are not included in this programme.

This grant is not for surgical research. Learn more about surgical research fellowships, grants and awards.

The successful applicant will be notified of the award by the end of April.

Application and selection process

The selection period runs from March to April, including referee checks.

The process requires applicants to provide:

  1. A completed application form including details of two referees who will be able to comment on their professional knowledge of you. We will only contact the referees of shortlisted applicants.
  2. A proposal document (1,000 words max.). This should specify the anticipated timescale and dates, the chosen theme, the items or collections to be consulted, how the research and artwork will be disseminated, and the expected outcomes during and after the project.
  3. A CV.
  4. Images of your artwork, provided via a WeTransfer link included in your application email.

Please provide images of your artwork via a WeTransfer link in the application email. Links purporting to be artwork that are provided in a separate email, especially those sent directly from WeTransfer will be discarded. If we receive emails of this type, we will not open them and will delete them to protect our systems from phishing and spam content.

Assessment criteria

Assessment criteria include: relevance to the residency themes, evidence of initial engagement with the collections, and clarity from applicants on how they envisage the collections informing the proposed work and public engagement activities.

Residency period

The residency takes place between June and December 2026. The artwork and engagement activity are delivered within the residency period. Artists may structure their research flexibly, provided the schedule is agreed with the Library and Archives team.

Key details

  • Workspace: Research Room access
  • Facilities: Research space only (no studio or equipment)
  • Art‑making: Any work requiring materials other than dry drawing materials must be completed off-site

Creative development

During the residency, the artist will develop their proposal into a public‑facing creative output. Final deliverables include:

  • A blog or journal article.
  • At least one public engagement event.
  • A completed artwork to be deposited with the Library and Archives. This work should be framed, mounted or otherwise prepared for public display.

Public programme

Artists will collaborate with the Library and Archives team to shape events for audiences such as:

  • Students
  • Members and fellows of the Faculty of Dental Surgeons
  • The wider public

Promotion and launch

Completed work may be shared through:

Evaluation and learning

At the end of the residency, the artist will complete a reflective questionnaire. The Library and Archives team will produce an end‑of‑project report.

Grant and financial details

Grant amount: £4,000 for funding materials and research costs, including the preparation of works for display.

Grant payments will be made in instalments.

IP and acknowledgements

The artist retains full intellectual property rights. Rights agreements will be signed before research begins. The Royal College of Surgeons of England should be acknowledged in future publications. The successful applicant will sign an Artist Agreement covering timeline, deliverables, payment instalments, reporting, marketing, and IP. Induction includes orientation with Library and Archives staff and ongoing support.

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