Association of Academic Museums and Galleries

Job Summary

Reporting to the Director of Curatorial Affairs, the Registrar plays a key role in managing the IU Eskenazi Museum of Art’s 45,000+ object collection at the museum, including the galleries, public spaces, object viewing rooms, and storage facilities. The position manages policies and procedures for the permanent collection, including the archive holdings, as well as loans to the museum and loans out of the museum. In collaboration with the museum’s Conservation department, the position is charged with the care, preservation, and risk management of the museum’s collections and with ensuring that the collections are available for current and future visitors.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

Management, Resources, Budgets

• Coordinates with museum Conservation, Installation, and Curatorial staff on the oversight and care of the Eskenazi Museum of Art’s collection.
• Supervises, mentors, and trains Registrar staff, department graduate assistants, and interns.
• Working in close collaboration with other museum staff, the Registrar plans, coordinates, and schedules collection rotations, installations, object viewings, and exhibitions.
• Coordinates with other museum staff to create a master art installation schedule relating to art movements and shipping for exhibitions at the museum, storage facility, and other sites as appropriate.
• In consultation with the Director of Curatorial Affairs, prepares exhibitions and collections related budgets.

Art Collection

• Oversees the management, preservation, and storage of the collection(s), as well as accessioning of acquisitions, including gift documents, IRS forms, and appraisals from donors. Supervises the accessioning process, including recording object information, coordinating with museum staff on new photography of objects, ensuring the proper housing for objects, and conducting annual inventories.
• Negotiates and arranges fine arts insurance policies for permanent collection and loans, processes claims, and supervises risk management for the museum building and storage facility.
• Oversees loan partnerships (incoming and outgoing loans), conducts annual condition reporting in consultation with the Curatorial and Conservation departments, and processes loan renewal documentation.
• In consultation with Curatorial and Conservation staff, evaluates works in need of conservation treatment.
• Manages the collections database (TMS), including data clean-up, staff training, and the creation of user guides and reports, and works with Curatorial and Creative departments to ensure consistent data standardization.
• Prepares annual registrar’s report of acquisitions.
• Oversees Rights and Reproduction requests and processes to ensure proper accreditation and licensing of images of works in collections and loaned objects.

Exhibitions and Loans

• Works cross-departmentally to plan, develop, and manage loan exhibitions from the conceptual stage to execution, including contracts, domestic and international loans, insurance, transport, installation, condition reporting, tours, insurance, and storage, as needed.
• Collaborates cross-departmentally in the planning, scheduling, and production of exhibitions.
• In close coordination with other museum departments, develops initial exhibition budget for planning purposes.
• In close coordination with Director of Curatorial Affairs, drafts and reviews contractual agreements with lenders and participating institutions. Negotiates terms of the contracts and monitors compliance of agreements and payment schedules.
• Assesses lender requirements and fees for loans, and negotiates terms in the best interest of the museum in consultation with appropriate staff. Communicates terms and special requirements of loans to appropriate staff and staff of participating institutions, and monitors compliance with such terms and conditions.
• Responsible for securing U.S. Government Indemnity or other insurance for the museum and its partners or lenders.

Other Responsibilities

• Ensures performance to standards set by AAM and participates in reaccreditation activities on behalf of the Eskenazi Museum of Art.
• Maintains facility reports; in conjunction with Installation and Security staff, monitors environmental conditions in galleries and storage facilities.
• Liaises with Security on emergency preparedness plan and collections evacuation plan.
• Ensures compliance with IRS regulations, copyright laws, NAGPRA laws, AAMD guidelines and UNESCO guidelines.
• Maintains professional relationships within the field.
• Other duties as assigned or needed.

Qualifications

Education

• Required: Bachelor’s degree in museum services or other related field.
• Preferred: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in art history, arts administration, museum studies, or a related discipline.

Work Experience

• Required: Two years of experience in museum services or other related field.
• Preferred: Five years of experience in museum registration, collections, and exhibition management.
• Combinations of related education and experience may be considered.

Skills – Required

• Proficient communication skills.
• Maintains a high degree of professionalism.
• Demonstrated time management and priority setting skills.
• Demonstrates a high commitment to quality.
• Possesses flexibility to work in a fast paced, dynamic environment.
• Seeks to acquire knowledge in area of specialty.
• Highly thorough and dependable.
• Demonstrates a high level of accuracy, even under pressure.

Preferred Additional Skills

• Demonstrated knowledge and application of best practices and procedures for art handling, installation, storage, condition reporting, IPM, preservation, and basic conservation.
• Familiarity with NAGPRA, AAMD guidelines, and archiving methods and practices.

Salary Range

$55,000-$63,000/yr.

Work Location

Bloomington, Indiana

How to Apply

• Interested candidates should submit their applications at https://jobs.iu.edu. This is a Staff Position open to external candidates, Job ID 298098. Additional information about the position and about Indiana University and its policies is included in the online job posting.
• Questions about the position should be directed to Steve Cook at cooksb@indiana.edu. No resumes or cover letters to this address, please.

About the Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University

Since its establishment in 1941, the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University (IU) has grown from a small university teaching collection into one of the foremost university art museums in the country. A preeminent teaching museum, the museum’s internationally acclaimed collection includes more than 45,000 objects representing nearly every art-producing culture throughout history.

In 2019, the museum completed a $30 million renovation of its acclaimed I. M. Pei– designed building, which now features seven new galleries, four new centers (Education, Conservation, Curatorial Studies, and Prints, Drawings, and Photographs), and three art study rooms. With a revived physical space comes a renewed focus on our outreach, teaching, technology, and exhibition efforts. As a teaching institution, one of our primary goals is to enable access to and engage students, scholars, and our community with our outstanding collection. The new study rooms will enable us to share our collection both in person and virtually with a wide range of learners. The Registrar will play an integral role in activating those spaces.

Building on a new five-year strategic plan, the museum is committed to achieving an authentic and lasting culture of diversity, equity, access, and inclusion (DEAI), which will be reflected in all aspects of museum practice, including learning, exhibitions, programming, acquisitions, and staffing. The Eskenazi Museum of Art seeks to recruit and retain a diverse workforce as a reflection of our commitment to serve the diverse people of Indiana, to sustain the excellence of the university, and to offer our students richly varied disciplines, perspectives and ways of knowing and learning. Candidates under-represented in a diverse range of museum fields are strongly encouraged to apply.

IU Eskenazi Museum of Art Mission

The Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University is an innovative resource for research and learning with original works of art. We engage diverse audiences throughout Indiana and create a welcoming environment for learners of every background.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Indiana University is an equal employment and affirmative action employer and a provider of ADA services. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment based on individual qualifications. Indiana University prohibits discrimination based on age, ethnicity, color, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, disability status or protected veteran status. Indiana University does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its educational programs and activities, including employment and admission, as required by Title IX. Questions or complaints regarding Title IX may be referred to the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights or the university Title IX Coordinator.