Curator | UK

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Salary: Up to £37,000
Location: Blackfriars, London
Deadline: 16/04/2017 23:59
Hours: 40.00
Benefits: plus attractive benefits
Job Type: Temporary

Maternity Cover Contract – 12 months

About the Royal Academy of Arts

The Royal Academy of Arts is one of the UK’s foremost arts institutions, internationally famous for its programme of temporary exhibitions. Dedicated to promoting the creation, study and enjoyment of art to all audiences, it is led by eminent artists and architects, and unique in having practitioners at its very core.

This is an exciting time to join the Royal Academy as it approaches its 250th anniversary in 2018. A series of major investments currently underway will transform the physical and digital infrastructure as well as the public offer of this unique institution. The Masterplan designed by one of the world’s leading architects, Sir David Chipperfield RA, will transform the Royal Academy, uniting its two distinct buildings, Burlington House and 6 Burlington Gardens, to create a 2.5 acre campus in the heart of Mayfair. This ambitious scheme will provide a new suite of temporary exhibition galleries, a double height auditorium, a dedicated learning centre and an RA Collections Gallery.

About this position

An exciting and rare opportunity has arisen to join the Academy’s exhibitions team as a Curator. The Exhibitions Department organises the RA’s world renowned programme of eight to ten temporary exhibitions each year. Drawn from public and private collections, the programme is often organised in partnership with leading museums internationally. Exhibitions are displayed in the Academy’s Main Galleries, Sackler Wing and the forthcoming Burlington Galleries.

About you

You will have extensive and varied curatorial experience, gained ideally within a prominent arts institution or organisation. Drawing upon established contacts, you will be a skilled networker. You will be experienced with all aspects of the exhibition’s life cycle from idea generation, financial viability, working with external curators, and sourcing and negotiating loan arrangements through to its implementation and the provision of lectures and seminars, so realising the ambitions of the Academy’s temporary exhibitions programme.

You will have a solid history of art background. Fluency in an additional European language is desirable. Specialists are welcome to apply but will be expected to work on a wide variety of exhibitions.

Well presented, articulate and confident with a creative flair, you should possess well-honed organisational and communications skills to build effective working relationships with internal colleagues and external stakeholders. You will have the ability to work on a number of projects simultaneously and be adept at dealing with differing and, at times, competing priorities.

A strong people manager, who is able to delegate effectively, you will supervise the work of junior curatorial staff and, where appropriate, interns and/or volunteers, and identify personal development opportunities for the team. You will have a genuine interest in the work of the Academy.

What benefits do we offer?

We offer a very generous pension scheme, contributing up to 10% of your salary into a defined contribution scheme. On top of 25 days’ holiday and 8 days bank holiday each year, we close between Christmas Eve and New Year, allowing staff additional paid holiday. Staff are encouraged to attend free History of Art and life drawing classes on site. We also have a staff choir, running club and craft club. Best of all, we have a reciprocal agreement with many leading museums and art galleries in London and New York, that allow you to enter for free with your staff pass.

Interviews to be held week commencing: 24th April 2017

JOB DESCRIPTION

MAIN OBJECTIVES

Under the general direction of the Artistic Director:

As a key member of the curatorial team, take responsibility for managing specified temporary exhibitions and for directing the associated curatorial support staff and external advisers and consultants
Provide a significant contribution to the development of a world class exhibition programme in keeping with the Royal Academy’s exhibition strategy
Undertake research into specified exhibitions, potential exhibitions, individual artists, paintings, themes and ideas in the course of generating discussion of future programmes
Nurture and develop junior curatorial support staff and, when required, interns and/or volunteers

MAIN DUTIES

As a member of the curatorial team, participate in and contribute to, discussions and the generation of ideas in the formulation of the exhibition programme
Report to the Senior Curator on a regular basis to agree the strategy and priorities for the curatorial team, and to contribute to the effective development and implementation of the overall exhibitions strategy with the Artistic Director and the Head of Exhibitions
Provide support to the Artistic Director in all activities – departmental, executive and organisation wide, and work collaboratively on exhibition planning
Day-to-day supervision of junior curatorial staff: delegating tasks as appropriate and managing the fair allocation of workloads; instructing and guiding; identifying personal development opportunities for junior staff as well as, when required, interns and/or volunteers
Plan and execute loan exhibitions as allocated by the Exhibitions Directorate. This will require building and maintaining a network of contacts with potential lenders – individuals and institutions – making visits and negotiating loans, searching out and selecting works, discussing and reaching agreement, setting and agreeing timetables and working closely with internal staff (Exhibition Managers, Exhibition Assistants, Rights & Reproductions team) along with external advisers and guest curators etc.
Steer exhibition projects through various stages from initial development to completion by contributing to internal meetings across the organisation, exchanging information, discussing all relevant aspects of particular projects, reporting on progress and ensuring clear and effective communication across the organisation and beyond
Contribute to the formulation of budgets and forecasts for exhibition costs, working closely with the Artistic Director, Head of Exhibitions, Exhibition Managers and Exhibition Assistants, the curatorial group and the Finance Department
Take day-to-day management responsibility for allocated exhibitions. Monitor progress, discuss and resolve queries and problems, ensure appropriate flow of information to help maintain clarity of practise, accurate database systems and efficient working across staff in the Exhibitions Office
Work closely with Exhibition Managers and Exhibition Assistants (as well as Art Handlers and Conservators) to help oversee the successful and timely installation of the exhibitions
Together with the Head of Exhibition Management work with exhibition, graphic and lighting designers to manage exhibition design and installation
Prepare and deliver high quality presentations to various audiences (for example, Council and Exhibitions Committee, staff, and the Development, Press, Marketing and Learning Departments); deliver lectures and gallery talks for sponsors, patrons, visitors and contribute to the public programme
Work closely with Publications Department in the preparation and production of exhibition catalogues
Develop exhibition-related material (gallery guide, exhibition text panels and labels)
Liaise with the Learning Department over contributors to the public programme and its formulation, as well as other associated events
Approve all didactic and documentary material and all sponsorship and publicity material, including leaflets, press releases, etc. (in consultation with the relevant departments at the RA)
Answer press queries, provide press interviews and attend Press Day. If requested, gives further interviews during the course of the exhibition
Deliver lectures and seminars; write for external institutions, as appropriate, in order to promote the standing of the Academy
Undertake any duty which may reasonably be allocated by the Artistic Director or other senior staff

PERSON SPECIFICATION

KNOWLEDGE

Undergraduate degree in History of Art, or related subject, and ideally a post-graduate qualification
Knowledge of an additional European language to spoken fluency is desirable

SKILLS

First class oral and written communication skills
Proven research skills – specialist research and advanced information gathering ability in the field of art history, and associated with the creation and development of loan exhibitions
Well-honed administrative skills, fully computer literate to self-administrate (correspondence, reporting and maintaining records of material and information)
Ability to work simultaneously on numerous different projects and meet tight deadlines
Strong stake holder management, fully able to work co-operatively with external partners, as well as internal departments in the preparation and production of exhibition catalogues and other exhibition-related material such as education booklets, exhibition captions and panels, press releases, sponsorship brochures, marketing materials etc.
Excellent interpersonal skills – able to work co-operatively and effectively across all Academy departments, externally with potential lenders (both individuals and institutions), and other members of the Curatorial, Exhibition Management and Publications teams as well as in support of external advisors and guest curators appointed to specific projects
Excellent diplomacy and advocacy skills in, for example, representing the Exhibitions Department internally and the Academy externally, negotiating complex loan agreements, problem solving, etc.
A proficient networker, good at building and maintaining networks outside of the institution that relate to the Academy’s fields of interest and further build upon the reputation of the Academy
Strong and demonstrable commercial acumen

EXPERIENCE

Relevant experience of exhibition creation – from the generation of ideas and research around them, through to implementation of plans and exhibition delivery, including sourcing and negotiating loans, and of terms of loans, writing loans requests etc. (Preferably within the context of significant and sizeable loan exhibitions)
Experience of working in a museum or equivalent institution
Ability to contribute to the strategic development of the department – the exhibition programme and long term plans for the department, effective use of displays within this context, ability to think laterally and creatively to help realise the ambitions of the department and the Academy
Experience of formulating and monitoring expenditure: a clear understanding of the connections between exhibition ideas and the financial reality of their production
Experience of delivering lectures and seminars, leading exhibition tours, accompanying press trips and attending external patron events
Some experience of fundraising from a variety of sources

PERSONAL QUALITIES

Co-operative approach to team working to facilitate the project team approach across the department and Academy wide
Clear communication and interpersonal skills – networking internally across Academy departments, externally with potential lenders (both individuals and institutions), working closely with other members of both the Curatorial and Exhibition Management teams
An adaptable, flexible and helpful approach to work – willingness to take on a range of tasks and provide support to colleagues.
Some flexibility in relation to working hours, including some evenings and weekends to attend events, give lectures, lead exhibition tours, supervise installations of exhibitions, etc.
Genuine interest in the work and objectives of the Academy

For further information, please visit https://www.cloudonlinerecruitment.co.uk/royalacademy/VacancyDetails.aspx?FromSearch=True&MenuID=&VacancyID=154