About Our Organization

Founded in 1968, the Studio Museum in Harlem is the nexus for artists of African descent locally, nationally, and internationally and for work that has been inspired and influenced by Black culture. It is a site for the dynamic exchange of ideas about art and society.

Job Summary

The Studio Museum in Harlem has permanent and special collections of 9,000+ works of art, representing more than 700 artists spanning over 200 years of history. The holdings include paintings, drawings and prints, sculptures, watercolors, photographs, videos, performance, and mixed-media installations. Six thousand photographs, which form a portion of the James Van Der Zee Archive, are jointly cared for with The Metropolitan Museum of Art and located in their storage. Together with the Van Der Zee Archive, the permanent collection highlights prestigious creatives in Black art history as well as the Museum’s signature Artist-in-Residence program.  

The Museum seeks a dynamic professional with proven institutional experience and demonstrated capacity to work collaboratively to improve collection accessibility. The role will oversee the permanent collection holdings, working to increase digital accessibility and centralized information management in accordance with the collection management priorities set by the Chief Program Officer, Senior Registrar, and the Curator of the Permanent Collection. Together with a team of approximately four collection and exhibition staff, the position will implement collection policy to audit, organize, and facilitate digitization goals, conservation reviews and treatment, housing upgrades, as well as object documentation. The Registrar will also monitor incoming acquisitions and outgoing loan activity and support as needed the Museum’s flagship programs: Artist-in-Residence and Expanding the Walls. The role will ensure the execution of required tasks, act as administrative contact for internal staff and external contractors, maintain object priorities for curatorial programming, as well as liaise with the Collection Database Manager and Archivist to refine data management strategies for improved object and programming documentation. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities 

• Ongoing management of museum’s permanent collection including but not limited to: 

• Physical inventory of all work in the permanent and special collections 

• Set goals for object condition and rehousing needs 

• Update database with tombstone information, component descriptions, installation instructions, conservation notes, and storage requirements according to TMS data entry standards. 

• Liaise with professional contractors for conservation, specialized housing, and photography needs. 

• Oversee housing upgrades by SMH staff and professional contractors. 

• Track spending for collection care activities utilizing an established Excel activity tracker. 

• Organize collection files together with Archivist and implement records retention policy to move historical information into permanent archive.  

• Work with the Collection Database Manager to audit existing data, establish best practice data entry standards, and develop key reports for reporting statistics. 

• Facilitate the intake of new acquisitions, build new object files, incoming shipping, etc. 

• Incorporate new acquisitions into the high-resolution photography workflow. 

• Manage outgoing loans with Senior Registrar, preparing artwork identified for outgoing loans 

• Provide support as needed for the Artist-in-Residence and Expanding the Walls programs. 

• Provide support or coverage for exhibition installations and deinstallations, including permanent collection exhibitions and gallery rotations. 

• Other duties as assigned 
   

1. Managerial / Supervisory Responsibilities:    

• Managerial / supervisory scope (individual contributors should select “N/a” in the below two sections). Number of:  

• Direct Reports: N/a 

• Indirect Reports: 2-4 (Intern, Mellon Collection Fellow) 

• Recruitment – n/a 

• Performance Management – provide clear direction, regular feedback and appropriate support to staff as needed to succeed in their jobs. 

• Development - provide staff with appropriate career and professional development encouragement 

• Engagement - ensure staff are effectively engaged. 

• Culture & Environment – foster in staff behaviors and attitudes consistent with Studio Museum in Harlem’s mission, core values and desired organizational culture. 

• Act as mentor to all emerging professionals and offer training support as needed. 

1. Key Stakeholders (who this position will interact with regularly): 

• Internal (excluding direct chain of command): 

-  Curatorial Staff and Fellows 

• Director’s Office 

• Collection and Exhibitions Management Staff 

• External: 

• Conservators 

• Photographers 

• Shippers & Craters 

• Framers 

• Temporary/Contract Art Handlers 

• Fabricators 

• Rigging consultants as needed 

Skills and Qualifications  

• Experience supporting events in galleries, museums, or nonprofit spaces. 
• Knowledge of Crestron, Extron, or similar AV control systems. 
• Familiarity with ticketing, CRM, or digital archiving systems. 
• Basic understanding of network cabling and server management. 

Education and Experience 

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution 

• 5–7 years of experience with a museum, gallery, and/or cultural collection with a deep interest in and commitment to registration and collection management 

• Experience with TMS or other collections software, NetX, and Microsoft Office 360, including Excel, Outlook, and Teams 

• Creative thinker and problem solver 
   
   

 Desirable: 

• MA degree in Art History or Museum Studies 

• Interest in Archives 

• Interest in history, particularly African American history and/or mid-century to contemporary crt history 

• Experience as an artwork courier 

Physical Demands 

• They will be in a windowless and climatized space. 

• They will be in a shared office space with no privacy. 

• They will need to carry heavy boxes—up to 30 lbs. 

Work Environment 

• This position is considered a non-exempt position for purposes of federal wage and hour law, which means that you will be eligible for overtime pay for hours in excess of 40 in a given workweek. 

• Fast-paced environment with varying levels of guests and employees present. 

• Building Accessibility – office locations are wheelchair accessible, with elevators in the building. Other accessibility accommodations can be further discussed. 

Compensation

$42 an hour

Salary is commensurate with experience within the guidelines of a small not-for-profit. A competitive benefits package is provided, including medical, dental, life and long-term disability insurance, a retirement account, and substantial vacation time.

Application Instructions

Please upload your resume and a cover letter to your application. No phone calls or emails, please.  

Please note that while careful consideration will be given to each submission, only a select number of applicants will be contacted due to the volume of interest.

The Studio Museum in Harlem is an equal opportunity employer and considers all candidates for employment regardless of race, color, sex, age, gender identification, national origin, creed, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or political affiliation. We celebrate our inclusive work environment and encourage folks of all backgrounds and perspectives to apply. At the Studio Museum, we are committed to having an inclusive and transparent environment where every voice is heard and acknowledged. We embrace our differences, and know that our diverse team is a strength that drives our success.  

Research shows that women and individuals from underrepresented backgrounds often apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. We recognize that it is highly unlikely that an applicant meets 100% of the qualifications for a given role. Therefore, if much of this job description describes you, then you are highly encouraged to apply for this role.