Curator | USA

The Curator of Art II assists the Director and Chief Curator in organizing, installing, publicizing, maintaining, archiving, and providing programming for exhibitions and collections. The Curator II also independently curates exhibitions and creates public programming opportunities. The Curator II writes press releases and explicatory texts; engages in daily communication with artists, art galleries, collectors, faculty, and students; organizes and updates document and image archives; co-designs books, brochures, and posters; and updates the gallery’s website and social media accounts. The Curator II functions as the Lead Preparator and works closely with the Director, Registrar, and student workers to install exhibitions. The Curator II also helps maintain the permanent collection, trains gallery interns and graduate assistants, acts as a liaison to faculty and students, and engages in various other administrative duties.

Additional Information:

University Galleries produces exhibitions and interpretive programming that reflect the shifting dynamics of contemporary artistic practice. Consistent with our university heritage, we cultivate a laboratory of expression that embraces various approaches to creating and experiencing art. We bring socially significant art, performance, and experimental process to our region, while furthering the careers of Illinois artists and international artists alike.

Our exhibitions feature both emerging and established artists, often those whose work has not been previously presented in a comprehensive manner. We have organized the first U. S. museum surveys for artists including: Carrie Schneider, Walter Robinson, Melanie Schiff, David Wojnarowicz, Irena Knezevic, Alexis Rockman, Martin Wong, Juan Angel Chávez, Nadia Hotait, Jason Lazarus, Siebren Versteeg, Michelle Grabner, Allan Sekula, Tony Tasset, and Stephanie Brooks. We have also organized large-scale exhibitions or projects for artists including: Terry Adkins, Oliver Herring, Dianna Frid, Claire Ashley, Kendell Carter, Jeanne Dunning, and Keith Haring. We have organized group exhibitions including Strange Oscillations and Vibrations of Sympathy, The UFO Show, The House of the Seven Gables, Sad Songs, post-hypnotic, and pixerina witcherina, among others.

Since 1988 we have traveled 32 exhibitions to 79 museums, universities, and arts centers. During this same period we have produced more than 50 exhibition-related books that have been distributed internationally. Through such activity, our program has had considerable impact beyond the walls of the university and the borders of the Midwestern states.

We occupy a spacious storefront space in Normal’s Uptown Station, which houses the Amtrak station and City Hall. From this centrally located facility, we have great visibility and access to community members.

1. Master’s degree in Art History, Curatorial Studies, Studio Art, or a related field.
2. Two years’ experience working in an art gallery or museum.
3. Valid driver’s license
4. Strong verbal skills and demonstrated excellence in writing.
5. Strong knowledge of contemporary art and general knowledge of art history.
6. Extemporaneous speaking skills needed to conduct tours of exhibitions, introduce speakers, and talk to press.
7. Demonstrated digital design skills and proficiency with a camera.
8. Ability to catalogue and handle works of art, including storage, packing, framing, and general conservation techniques.
9. Ability to design and supervise exhibition installations.
10. Grant writing experience.
11. Experience setting up and operating exhibition-related technology including computers, projectors, monitors, and speakers.
12. Experience in K-12 or community education.
13. Ability to work collaboratively with diverse groups of people.
14. If this position is Security Sensitive or if you are subject to a criminal background investigation based on University policy, then employment is contingent upon you passing a satisfactory criminal background investigation. You may not begin work until the criminal background investigation results have been received and cleared by Human Resources. 

For full job description and details on how to apply visit: https://www.jobs.ilstu.edu/applicants/jsp/shared/position/JobDetails_css.jsp