Century Arts Foundation Curator of Special Projects [Parrish Art Museum, Water Mill, NY]

Description

The Parrish Art Museum seeks a visionary, team-oriented, and energetic program leader who is responsible for building and leading a balanced schedule of innovative and relevant projects, public programs, and community engagement that advance the mission and values of the Museum, while reaching diverse audiences. The position requires a commitment to the local community and an eye for national and international impact. The ideal candidate is a respected individual with a strong network of connections and background in exhibition-making and program execution, who understands the community and has the ability to capture the viewer’s attention by bridging the physical with the virtual, who can serve individuals in a broad spectrum of disciplines and engagement modalities while cultivating and maintaining positive relationships with patrons, collectors, community, and program partners.

The Century Arts Foundation Curator of Special Projects should build creativity throughout the Museum, focusing on organizing cross disciplinary public programs as well as culturally relevant, community-based activities. The CSP should help invigorate the Museum with new ideas, lead specific strategic initiatives, expand networks into newly targeted communities, attract new partnerships, and advance institutional thought leadership, regionally, nationally and globally.  Working in concert with the Museum Director, Deputy Director, Chief Curator, and Education Director, the CSP helps chart the artistic and strategic direction of the Parrish, including, but not limited to, public programs and new strategic initiatives designed to move the Museum into its next phase of growth and development.

Requirements

The Century Arts Foundation Curator of Special Projects is a combination of a creative visionary and a big picture thinker/doer who can conceive trailblazing ideas, pursue them assertively, and deliver on the concepts. She or he is opportunity-driven, actively engages with multiple creative communities, and will serve as a public ambassador for the Museum and its mission.  The CSP is a strong leader who will energize her/his team around a shared vision, and will be an active champion and representative of the Museum’s mission, upholding our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity.

As a central member of the creative team, the CSP will help set and achieve ambitious goals for projects and inspire big-picture thinking and creativity in the staff; share research,  develop innovative strategies that advance the Museum’s stature and reach; create widespread enthusiasm for, and attract new audiences and stakeholders to, the Museum; inspire and guide collaboration across Museum departments and with other cultural institutions in the area; bring new stakeholders into the family, generate increased audiences and press, and enhance the visibility of the Museum regionally, nationally, and internationally; maintain and enhance bridges to creative communities, including those in architecture, design, technology, film, literature, politics, and the environment; work with the Director, Deputy Director, Chief Curator, Education Director, and Head of Museum Experiences to generate new strategies that invigorate our Museum and expand our reach, professionalism, and artistic excellence.

Specific Responsibilities and Duties:

• Curate a vibrant, innovative and relevant series of public exhibitions, programs, and events that are rigorously researched and align with and strengthen institutional goals.
• Manage department administrative logistics, budgets, and program schedule of activities
• Broaden and cultivate audience support through marketing of programs, activities, and initiatives
• Expand engagement through strategic partnerships
• Elevate participation and engagement with local institutions and audiences, strengthening The Museum’s  role as a cultural leader and community partner
• Work with marketing and development departments to ensure strong and effective communication to all stakeholders.
• Coordinate with the Communications team to write and edit program notes, marketing copy, and website/ blog entries that relate the programming to the Museum’s cultural vision

Qualifications:

The ideal candidate for this position must have the following: an M.A., or equivalent, in a field of cultural studies; curatorial experience at a major museum or similar institution; excellent management, research, writing, organizational, and communication skills; thorough familiarity with best practices for museum administration, and strategic planning; ability to work collaboratively across disciplines; demonstrated experience in public programming; and knowledge of how to work effectively and collaboratively.

Specifically:

a) Experience and Skills:

• Record of producing and managing innovative cultural programming for the public
• A strong knowledge of and commitment to audience development and retention
• Demonstrated ability to set strategic goals for program areas and events, to prioritize tasks for their successful completion, implementation, and for their evaluation
• Understanding of how marketing and social media can drive audience building
• Dedication to collaborative teamwork, peer to peer mentoring
• Ability to work well with staff, volunteers, trustees, sponsors, and colleagues outside the Museum
• Ability to work evening and weekend hours as needed to meet audience building goals

b) Knowledge and Education:

• Master’s Degree in related cultural field
• Five years of working experience with increasing responsibilities in cultural programming or performing arts with record of audience building
• Familiarity with Microsoft Office Suite 2007/2010 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Google Docs, Apple OS and related software a plus
• Experience with Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) tools such as Raiser’s Edge or Mail Chimp a plus

c) Personal qualities:

• Quick learner
• High energy
• Flexible thinker
• Likes to play with ideas
• Good listener
• Collaborative

Interested candidates should send Cover Letter and CV to Chris Siefert, Deputy Director at siefertc@parrishart.org