Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art | USA
Robert M. and Ruth L. Halperin Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art, Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University
The Halperin Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art is a senior curatorial position responsible for the presentation, research, preservation, and growth of the collection of modern and contemporary art at the Cantor Arts Center. The curator works closely with the museum’s curators and educators in a collaborative environment that encourages the development of innovative programs, exhibitions, and acquisitions. The curator also must be able to thrive in a prestigious academic environment, developing partnerships with Stanford faculty members and engaging students across disciplines. The candidate should possess demonstrable museum experience and have a record of accomplishment in successfully producing significant exhibitions, academic and public programs, and publications in contemporary art, as well as the ability to lecture and teach. The curator reports to the Cantor’s John and Jill Freidenrich Director.
The Halperin Curator will join a new and revitalized curatorial team that will participate in the re-imagining and re-installation of the museum’s galleries and other exhibition spaces. This is a chance to help define a new vision for modern and contemporary art at the Cantor, as well as for the museum overall. As the encyclopedic art museum at Stanford, the Cantor has an opportunity to help determine what a 21st-century museum will look like and how it will function. The Cantor will present exhibitions, installations, and programs that feature contemporary concerns and artistic trends, as well as implement state-of-the-art interpretative methods and technologies. It is also an opportunity to establish the Cantor as a site of interdisciplinary cultural discourse, with social justice and other relevant contemporary issues and concerns as recurring themes, and the creation of an inclusive community as an outcome. The Cantor intentionally seeks to create an environment of inclusion and diversity of staff, collections, exhibitions, and programs.
Another significant aspect of the position will be building the collection of contemporary art, actively pursuing acquisitions and loans, while fostering relationships with donors and other supporters of the museum. The candidate must have proven experience working with collectors and all aspects of donor cultivation. As a thoughtful member of the curatorial team, the curator will bring in-depth knowledge of art history and museum practice to assist in implementing an exciting vision for the museum. The curator’s purview will be the art of the 20th and 21st centuries, spanning media and global geographic regions. The curator should be well connected to other museum colleagues, artists, galleries, nationally and internationally. With the Anderson Collection at Stanford located adjacent to the Cantor, the Halperin Curator will work alongside premier collection of modern and contemporary American art.
The successful candidate will be expected to propose and realize major exhibition projects within their field of expertise. These projects may take cues from the Cantor’s permanent collection, be built from loans from other institutions and collections, or a combination of these two sources. Major publications, conceived as meaningful contributions to the field on the issues addressed in the exhibition, will accompany these projects. The curator also will help to conceive and implement academic and public programs, while playing a strategic role in strengthening the museum’s commitment to the academic life of the university, by initiating collaborations with Stanford students, faculty, and staff; and ensuring that the resources of the museum are made available to the faculty and students in meaningful and innovative ways. The Cantor seeks to be a center for arts leadership for the next generation with a special focus on training diverse candidates for curatorial, programmatic, and other museum positions.
For more information about this position and to apply, please visit: https://careersearch.stanford.edu/jobs/robert-m-and-ruth-l-halperin-curator-of-modern-contemporary-art-4050
Cantor Arts Center
328 Lomita Drive
Stanford, CA 94305-5060
museum.stanford.edu