Curator of Collections at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia

Job Description:

Position Title:

Curator of Collections

The Curator of Collections is responsible for documenting, preserving, protecting, and promoting works of art, which are in the College's permanent collection, which has been appraised for more than $5 million and includes approximately 450 works of art primarily by American and African artists. This position provides collaborative leadership in the areas of collections policy and collections management. The Curator of Collections has specialized knowledge of areas of art, museum acquisition processes, and museum collection systems. The incumbent works closely with the Collections Manager and conservators as necessary to evaluate the condition and conservation needs of works and consider loans of works of art in the permanent collection. The Curator of Collections serves as a liaison who helps sustain relationships with students, faculty, staff, and alumnae. The incumbent also helps develop new associations for the Museum and the College. The Curator of Collections may assist the Director with essential collections-focused responsibilities including contributing to the process of writing grants, helping to organize exhibitions from the collection, digitizing the collection, advising on touring exhibitions of the collection, and publishing a book on the collection.

• Conducts primary research on the College's permanent collection with the involvement of student research assistants;


• Updates and maintains the artist and object files and updates collections research in an electronic collections management database in collaboration with Collections Manager;


• Assesses and responds to routine correspondence and inquiries regarding the permanent collections and the related policies;


• Processes gifts of works of art with the Collections Manager and corresponds with donors accordingly;


• Reviews and process incoming and outgoing loan requests and evaluate all related forms with the Collections Manager;


• Evaluates and update the collections management policy to ensure that it complies with American Association of Museum standards. Work with Collections Manager to recommend new policies and addenda accordingly. Attend conferences as needed and pursue advanced professional workshops/conferences as necessary;


• Provides specialized knowledge of the bequests and wills of donors;


• Serves as a principal investigator on collections-based initiatives that are supported by grants;


• May work with the Director to develop original exhibitions and evaluate proposals from artists and institutions;


• May work with the Director to research, implement and plan exhibitions, and complete the condition reports for incoming and outgoing loans;


• May be required to organize and present lectures and gallery talks on featured exhibitions;


• May serve as a point person to meet and coordinate with faculty and organize class sessions, which take place in the Museum;


• May work with the Director to complete grant applications, which are submitted regularly to family, county, and national foundations, government agencies and arts organizations;


• Works collaboratively with Collections Manager to review Collections-related forms and policies (such as incoming loan forms, outgoing loan forms, storage guides, insurance information, and the collections management policy) that are out of date and require revision; evaluate and revise these documents to ensure that they adhere to current museum standards; compare them to more recently completed documents that govern peer institutions, and revise them accordingly;


• Works collaboratively with Collections Manager to take inventory of the collection, evaluate and make recommendations for storage, arrange object photography, and work with conservators for works that need preservation;


• Works collaboratively with Collections Manager to digitize the collection and make it searchable to the public online;


• Makes suggestions for deaccessions; determine which works are worth saving (rather than discarding); conduct extensive research on objects, sift through objects that have no intrinsic or artistic value, and separate the objects accordingly; document and photograph works in collaboration with the involvement of the Department of Art faculty; formally access suitable works into the collection with the Director and document all changes in the status of the permanent collection;


• Helps supervise student interns and develop collections-based assignments.

A Bachelor's Degree in Art History or a related field and three years of experience in collections and program management are required. A Master's degree is preferred. The Curator of Collections provides collaborative leadership in collections management and policy. This position requires significant attention to detail, good organizational skills, exceptional communication skills (written and oral), expertise in an area or areas of art history, and a passion for working with students that have varying skill sets and a penchant for problem-solving. Excellent writing skills for informal audiences (i.e.: social media posts, blog style) and formal publications such as a collection book. Excellent oral communication skills are required when presenting information and responding to questions from internal and external customers in one-on-one or group situations. Incumbent must be able to write business correspondence and procedure manuals plus compose memos, letters, and e-mails. Also, must be able to read, analyze, and interpret documents such as professional journals, safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedural manuals. To perform this job successfully, an individual must have intermediate-level skills using Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) which includes typing basic letters, memos, and e-mails, plus things such as mail merges, flyers, spreadsheets using formulas, and creating forms.

A Master's degree is preferred

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to: use hands operate computers and to move art related, other office equipment, talk, walk, and listen. The employee is frequently required to: sit and stand, reach with hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to: stoop or kneel, and lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. The duties of this position require no special vision requirements beyond normal vision.

Days

1% - 25%

Full-time

Exempt

1

SC0551P

03/29/2023

Yes

Spelman College is an EEO/Minority/Female/Disabled/Veteran/Title IX Employer and we participate in E-Verify. We are a smoke-free campus.

Due to the heightened risk of contracting COVID-19 and the spread of variants, Spelman College requires up to date COVID-19 vaccination of all faculty, staff, and students (collectively "Campus Community") that have job duties, attend classes, or are otherwise present on campus. You will need to submit proof of up-to-date COVID-19 vaccination: full vaccination and a booster (when eligible) or a single dose of the bivalent vaccine) prior to your first day on campus or you may seek a medical or religious exemption to the vaccination requirement by providing the necessary documentation to: Yemi Brown, PharmD Manager of COVID-19 Operations, at ibiyemibrown@spelman.edu. Upon receiving your Spelman Technology log-in credentials, please keep your vaccination or exemptions records up-to-date using Etrieve.