Howard Morphy facts for kids
Howard Morphy, born on June 13, 1947, is a British anthropologist. An anthropologist is someone who studies human societies and cultures. He has spent a lot of time working with the Yolngu people in northern Australia.
Professor Morphy helped create the Research School of Humanities and the Arts at the Australian National University. Today, he is a distinguished professor of anthropology there. He is especially known for studying art and film from an anthropological point of view.
He has co-edited important books like The Anthropology of Art: a Reader and Rethinking Visual Anthropology. He also wrote about Australian Aboriginal art, including Ancestral Connections and Aboriginal Art. He has worked with filmmakers and helped put together art exhibitions, such as Yingapungapu at the National Museum of Australia.
Howard Morphy's Academic Journey
After earning his degrees from University College London, Howard Morphy worked briefly at the Ethnography department of the British Museum. In 1974, he moved to Australia to start his PhD at the Australian National University.
For his research, he lived and worked with the Yolngu people in northeast Arnhem Land (Yirrkala). This experience was very important for his studies.
Later, he taught at the Australian National University. In 1986, he became a lecturer in anthropology and a curator at the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford.
While at Oxford, Professor Morphy held important positions. He was a Junior Proctor in 1990-91 and a Senior Tutor at Linacre College. He also helped create a new university degree in Archaeology and Anthropology.
In 1996, he became a professor of anthropology at University College London. The next year, he returned to the Australian National University. At ANU, he became the director of the Centre for Cross Cultural Research. Then, he led the Research School of Humanities and the Arts, overseeing both student education and research. He stepped down from this role in September 2013.
Professor Morphy was also a past president of the Council for Museum Anthropology. This is a group within the American Anthropological Association. In 2013, he received the Huxley Memorial Medal from the Royal Anthropological Institute. This is a very important award in anthropology.
In 2018, a special seminar was held to celebrate the important work of Howard and Frances Morphy in Australian anthropology.
Howard Morphy's Family Life
Howard Morphy is married to Frances Morphy, who is also an anthropologist. She is an honorary associate professor at the Australian National University. They have worked together on many projects over the years.
The couple met while studying at University College London. They moved to Australia together to do their fieldwork in Arnhem Land. Frances Morphy has shared that their time with the Yolngu people gave them a strong foundation for their long partnership and shared interests throughout their lives.
