Henry Art Gallery seeks Curatorial Department Coordinator
The Curatorial Department Coordinator (CDC) is responsible for providing support for administration and the general management of projects across Exhibitions, Collections, and Programs areas of the Henry. The Curatorial Department includes all staff who work in Exhibitions, Collections, and Programs areas of the museum, including the Director, Director of Curatorial Affairs, Curator, Associate Curator of Collections, Associate Curator of Public and Youth Programs, Public and Youth Programs, Manager of Exhibitions and Registration, Exhibition Designer, Prep Crew, and Assistant Registrar. The CDC serves as the department liaison for interdepartmental processes, stewarding curatorial projects and their involvement of staff across the Henry. The CDC works in collaboration with Graphics, Communications, Visitor Experience, Operations, and Development teams.
STATUS: Regular full-time, FLSA non-exempt, Benefits eligible
PAY: $23.00 per hour
SCHEDULE: 36 hours per week, Tuesday through Friday; anticipated to work fully onsite
REPORTS TO: Director of Curatorial Affairs
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: Duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
Department Administrative Support: (30%)
• Under general supervision, the CDC organizes and prioritizes activities in support of the curatorial team and assures effective and efficient operation of the department’s projects as liaison to other departments of the museum
• Provides administrative support (including calendar management and travel arrangements) for the Director of Curatorial Affairs
• Maintains department calendar, including confirmed and held dates for exhibitions, programs, and collections activities, in tandem with scheduling of other museum events
• Prepares meeting agendas, and tracks action items for weekly department meetings, cross-department meetings, project-specific meetings, and appointments with external stakeholders
• Conducts research as needed for exhibitions, collections, and programs
• Manages correspondence with artists, lenders, donors of art, and other cultural institutions that can be of a sensitive and confidential nature. Creates and maintains department contact lists
• Is the first point of contact for receiving public and scholarly inquiries, redirects specific inquiries to appropriate department staff, as needed. Receives and sorts incoming mail
• Coordinates department work study appointments, scheduling, work stations, and other general orientation needs
Exhibition and Program Support: (30%)
• Schedules exhibition meetings, supports progress of exhibitions by administering checklists, tracking changes, updates, and other relevant information
• Develops and maintains timelines with communications, graphics, and development activities surrounding exhibitions and programs
• Collates and maintains artist and exhibition development information for organizing curator, ensures clear sharing of information with Exhibitions, and assists Curator with artist idea development, conversation, and research. Including the writing of extended object label text, as needed.
• Verifies and inputs accurate object information for object labels and other exhibition materials
• Coordinates exhibition installation documentation, maintains exhibition and program documentation inventory, and organizes digital files for future use and transfer to UW archives
• Creates and manages exhibition records in collection database
• Maintains touring exhibition database, consults with registrars and curators for viable options to host touring shows; facilitates correspondence
• Makes all travel arrangements and itineraries for visiting artists, scholars, or project technicians, including hospitality and payment arrangements
• Tracks and maintains artist contracts, letters of agreement for public engagements, and technical work-for-hire contracts
• Supervises Exhibitions Assistant work study position (a University of Washington student employee), delegating project-specific tasks, tracking professional interests/growth, and providing mentorship
Content Management for Publications: (30%)
• The CDC maintains content for, and is the general reviewer of, all published materials produced by the Henry that incorporate curatorial content, including but not limited to: exhibition materials, program materials, e-communications, public flyers, website entries, press releases, and annual reports. Checks for accuracy, approved language, and images
• Procures high resolution images, and manages copyright status, licensing, crediting, and proofs for all materials produced for programs and exhibitions, as well as exhibition catalogs
• Functions as project manager for all exhibition brochures and catalogs. Defines scope of publication with Curator and Designer; develops detailed work plan, resources allocation, and schedule for project completion; tracks progress and approvals in each phase of the project; coordinates design and curatorial feedback at each iteration of the project; is responsible for maintaining overall project timeline and budget
• Manages exhibition catalogs’ distribution, sales contracts, ecommerce arrangements, and library exchanges
• Creates and maintains website entries for exhibitions and programs
• Compiles materials to be shared with press for exhibitions and programs
• Maintains department data, statistics, and summary information compiled for year-end reporting
Collections Support: (10%)
• Organizes Board of Trustees Collection Committee, including scheduling of meetings, coordination with Committee Chair, preparation of all meeting materials, research on new gifts presented at meetings, and preparing meeting minutes
• Provides collection object cataloging support pertaining to updating object records, artist information, and exhibition history for objects
Supervisory Responsibilities:
• Supervises work study assistants, research assistants, interns, contractors, etc., as assigned
Other duties as assigned.