Association of Academic Museums and Galleries

About University at Albany:
Established in 1844 and designated a University Center of the State University of New York in 1962, the University at Albany’s broad mission of excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, research and public service engages a diverse student body of more than 17,900 students in nine schools and colleges across three campuses.

Located in Albany, New York, New York State’s capital, the University is convenient to Boston, New York City and the Adirondacks.

The mission of the University Art Museum is to advance knowledge and foster understanding in contemporary visual arts. Through exhibitions, collections, educational programs, and publications, the museum seeks to provide a forum for art, artists, and audiences that enriches the intellectual life of the university and community.

Founded in 1967, the Museum’s 9,000 square foot facility was designed by architect Edward Durell Stone and, with much of the uptown campus, is recognized as an icon of late 20th- century Modernist architecture.  At the heart of the Museum is an ambitious exhibition program of approximately ten exhibitions each year encompassing all types of media. The Museum has built its reputation on originating nearly all of its exhibitions including thematic exhibitions of contemporary art that feature national and international emerging and established artists. The Museum presents lectures, public conversations, tours, classes, and other programming frequently in collaboration with other programs, academic departments, and peer institutions. It is responsible for the care, conservation, and exhibition of the University Fine Arts Collection in accordance with accepted standards in the museum field.

For further information: www.albany.edu/museum

Job Description:
The University Art Museum Associate Curator (80% PTE) works with the Director and Chief Curator to develop and implement a comprehensive exhibition program that aligns with the University’s mission in areas related to student success, diversity and inclusion, research excellence, engagement and service. The Associate Curator must be a skilled writer, researcher, and communicator capable of producing interpretive materials and rigorous scholarship that makes contemporary art accessible to a wide audience and advances the Museum and University’s mission. Through a proven track record of curatorial expertise, the successful candidate will build upon the Museum’s reputation as a nimble, artist-driven institution that features contemporary art by the most engaged emerging and renowned artists working today. The successful candidate will be an excellent collaborator working closely with artists, students, faculty, and the Museum staff in the realization of the Museum’s contemporary art program and will bring an entrepreneurial, self-starting mindset to their curatorial activities.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Work with Museum Director/Chief Curator to shape and implement a comprehensive, balanced, ambitious and experimental exhibition program that reflects and engages the University’s globally diverse student demographic and builds upon the Museum’s reputation in the field of contemporary art
• Work with Museum Director/Chief Curator to conceptualize and organize contemporary art exhibitions of varying scale and special projects as assigned that are grounded in rigorous research and scholarship
• Assume a full-range of curatorial responsibilities that will advance the Museum’s exhibition, research, and publication programs, while assuming administrative oversight in these areas
• Prepare both scholarly and accessible written interpretive materials that demonstrate keen critical insight and visual analysis for all exhibitions and programs including didactics, museum brochures, exhibition catalogs, educational guidebooks, and museum handouts
• Demonstrate creative vision and a strong track record of realizing complex contemporary art projects and the ability to collaborate with artists in the research and realization of new work
• Collaborate with the Museum’s Outreach Coordinator to foster sustained curricular use of the Museum’s exhibitions and programs, for both undergraduate and graduate teaching and forge partnerships with University faculty and staff as well as peer public and private academic institutions to develop special projects, programs, and exhibitions that advance the University’s mission
• Work with Museum Director/Chief Curator and University Advancement Office to assist with fundraising and public relations efforts that support curatorial projects and broader museum activities through the development of proposals for acquisitions, exhibitions, programs, and publications from individuals, foundations, federal agencies, and other sources
• Pursue scholarly research on artwork in the Collections for catalogues, exhibitions, digital media, and related materials to increase visibility of the Museum’s holdings and to participate in the Museum’s ongoing effort to build, present, and interpret its Collections
• Work with the Museum Director and the Office of Communications and Marketing to enhance the Museum’s position locally, nationally, and internationally by writing press releases, developing, and maintaining relationships with critics, writers, and editors of newspapers, magazines, art journals, other print publications, and digital media
• Assist the Museum Director/Chief Curator with administrative duties as assigned including correspondence, remarks, grant and funding proposals, and exhibition related documents
• Adhere to Museum and University policies, procedures, and protocols and support management decisions in a professional manner
• This position reports to the Museum Director/Chief Curator.

Requirements:
Minimum Qualifications:

• MA or MFA in Art or Art History from a college or university accredited by a U.S. Department of Education or an internationally recognized accrediting organization
• A minimum of 5 years of curatorial experience in a public or academic museum or a non-profit art space that functions in accordance with the American Alliance of Museum’s (AAM) professional practices
• A minimum of 5 years of experience working with artists of all levels, from emerging to those of international reputation and from a diversity of cultures
• A proven track record of inventive exhibitions and significant publications
• Applicant must possess a strong working knowledge of art history and proven scholarly expertise in contemporary art as well as a working knowledge of artistic production in all mediums
• Commitment to equity and inclusion in museum practice and to engaging with a wide range of audiences and constituencies

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Ability to work effectively and collegially with others as well as to manage projects and deadlines independently
• Applicant  must be detail oriented and be able to manage simultaneous priorities
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and an aptitude for public speaking
• Applicant must possess keen interpersonal skills and be a strong collaborator
• Experience with Microsoft Office, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Applicant must have a willingness to work evenings and occasional weekends and perform other duties as assigned.
• Applicants must address in their cover letter their ability to work with a culturally diverse population.

Additional Information:
Professional Rank and Salary Grade: Senior Staff Assistant, SL-3

Special Notes: This is a part time, 80% FTE position

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, or Clery Act, mandates that all Title IV institutions, without exception, prepare, publish and distribute an Annual Security Report. This report consists of two basic parts: disclosure of the University’s crime statistics for the past three years; and disclosures regarding the University’s current campus security policies. The University at Albany’s Annual Security Report is available in portable document format [PDF] by clicking this link http://police.albany.edu/ASR.shtml

Pursuant to Executive Order 161, no State entity, as defined by the Executive Order, is permitted to ask, or mandate, in any form, that an applicant for employment provide his or her current compensation, or any prior compensation history, until such time as the applicant is extended a conditional offer of employment with compensation.  If such information has been requested from you before such time, please contact the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations at (518) 474-6988 or via email at info@goer.ny.gov.

THE UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY IS AN EO/AA/IRCA/ADA EMPLOYER

Please apply online via https://albany.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp?JOBID=110025

 Application Instructions:
Applicants MUST submit the following documents:

• Resume
• Cover letter stating all the required minimum qualifications and any of the applicable preferred qualifications
• A list of at least three (3) references from professionals at the Director or Chief Curator level

 Note: After submitting your resume, the subsequent pages give you instructions for uploading additional documents (i.e. cover letter etc.).

Closing date for receipt of applications: February 15, 2020