Association of Academic Museums and Galleries

Temporary, Full-Time, Exempt, Salaried, Administrative Staff Appointment

The Lunder Institute for American Art supports innovative research, critical inquiry, and creative production aimed at expanding the boundaries of American art and its interpretive communities. Uniquely positioned within an academic museum on a liberal arts campus in Central Maine, the Lunder Institute offers opportunities for visiting artists and scholars to reflect, convene, and work with the Colby community across disciplinary boundaries to ask challenging questions, test new ideas, and produce work that is original, illuminating, and generative.

The Lunder Institute was established in 2017 through the generosity of Peter and Paula Lunder, longtime benefactors of the College, the Museum, and the field of American art. Since the establishment of the Museum in 1958, American art has been a distinguishing strength. Over the past decade, its founding collections have been expanded and enriched by two major gifts of art from the Lunder Collection in 2007 and 2017. The Lunder Institute was conceived as a research and creative arm of the Colby Museum, with significant ties to the College and its multidisciplinary curricula. It provides a platform for the Museum to develop scholarly and artistic collaborations and extend its engagement with local, national, and international audiences.

The Mellon postdoctoral fellowship for artistic and scholarly engagement will strengthen the educational, scholarly, and creative impact of the Lunder Institute for American Art by serving as a vital link between the Institute, the Colby College Museum of Art, and the College and managing projects and programs initiated by the Institute for the Colby community and the field of American art. The position, reporting to the Institute’s director, will generate platforms for collaborative engagement between the Institute’s visiting artists, scholars, and fellows and partnering institutions, museum staff, and the academic departments of the College. With an understanding of the expanding borders of the field of American art, the postdoctoral position will work with a broad group of internal and external stakeholders to expand the Institute’s interpretive communities and connect both curriculum and new research to the Institute’s programs, convenings, publications, and other endeavors, and act as the project manager for Institute programs and initiatives, including digital platforms. This is a one year, grant-funded position with the possibility of renewal for up to two additional years. We encourage inquiries from candidates who will contribute to the cultural and ethnic diversity of our college.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Facilitate and manage faculty access to visiting artists, scholars and programs organized by the Institute
• Coordinate class visits with Institute guests and fellows in partnership with Museum staff
• Plan, administer, and oversee faculty engagement, including conversations and workshops around specific research questions, programs, and opportunities emanating from the Institute
• Coordinate access to the museum and its collections for visiting artists and scholars
• Work closely with the Institute’s director of research, director of artist initiatives, and program director to organize, administer, and implement annual summer convenings for scholars, artists, faculty, and students.
• Conduct occasional research on work in the collection in support of Lunder Institute initiatives
• Develop, implement, and support digital and analog platforms for disseminating creative and scholarly work generated by the Lunder Institute and its partners
• Rigorously evaluate and improve the Institute’s academic, scholarly, and artistic programs
• Design scholarly engagement with strategic and programmatic alignment with the museum’s curator of academic programs
• Participate in developing grant proposals for Institute programs in collaboration with the Institute’s leadership team
• Track budgets for faculty incubator grants and workshops
• Develop and coordinate undergraduate internship and research opportunities for Colby students
• Occasional supervisor of undergraduate interns and research assistants
• Facilitate collaborations with leading academic museums and research institutions nationally and internationally through conferences, workshops, publications, etc.
• Perform additional duties as assigned; duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Ph.D. in Art History or a related field within the last five years
• Research interests related to American art and/or African diasporic studies, with discipline-related work in digital humanities a plus
• One to three years of experience working in a museum or research setting with progressively greater responsibility for managing complex projects including, but not limited to, artist and scholarly programs, print and digital publications, and multidisciplinary convenings
• Familiarity with a wide range or digital humanities platforms (including digital archives, podcasts, blogging, or other forms of online/digital publication)
• Demonstrated track-record of collaboration, ideally across various professional and scholarly fields
• Exceptional interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing
• Creative approach to problem solving
• Excellent organizational skills, time management, and attention to detail
• Genuine interest in engaging undergraduate students as well as scholars, curators, and artists
• Ability to make an impact through work as a member of a team and diverse community

KEY RELATIONSHIPS:

This position will work closely with the program director, director of artist initiatives, and director of research and will interact regularly with museum curatorial and education staff as well as with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and Institute guests.

WORKING CONDITIONS/PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

General open office and campus environment. Position involves sitting, although frequent movement is necessary. Computer usage involving repetitive hand/wrist motion is also necessary.

TO APPLY:

Interested candidates should apply electronically by clicking the “Apply Now” button on the Colby College website. Please submit a letter of interest including salary requirements, resume, and the contact information of three professional references.