At a time of significant growth for the Judaica collection and program, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston seeks an Assistant Curator to support and enrich this initiative with a wide range of curatorial and administrative responsibilities. The Shapiro-Silverberg Assistant Curator of Judaica will report to the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Curator of Judaica.
Judaica is one of the newest areas of collecting at the MFA. The museum’s growing Judaica holdings center on Jewish ritual art for the home and synagogue, but also include works - from paintings and sculpture, to postcards and ancient coins - that are an expression of the Jewish experience, history, and culture, stretching across time, place, and media.
Essential Functions
- Under the guidance of the Schusterman Judaica Curator, the Assistant Curator will support installations and rotations of Jewish objects and, when required, propose new displays, collaborate with Conservation, Exhibitions, and Design to check objects’ condition, submit installation requests, oversee gallery installations, update locations, and notify Member Visitor Services, PR, and Development.
- Perform duties related to the care, management and documentation of the collection; generate and update object files through in-depth collection research, make proposals for conservation treatments and photography, oversee the annual audit of the Judaica collection, create and edit records on TMS, move objects to and from labs and photo studios. In consultation with Museum-wide colleagues, receive new objects, and identify, catalogue and place them in storage.
- Support the Schusterman Judaica Curator in setting up a new Curator Circle; thus will help with the planning and running of the new group, while also contributing with their own talks and original research. Other tasks include assistance with selecting annual events and inviting guest speakers (both in-house colleagues and external scholars); writing and submitting event invitations and tracking RSVPs; coordinating logistics for on-site events, off-site trips, collection visits, and virtual programs; arranging internal meetings with the Steering Committee of the Judaica Curators Circle, colleagues, and external contacts; providing general communications and requests for various museum departments; carrying out payments for honoraria, travel, and hotel stays.
- Support the curatorial department with the MFA Pathways Internship program: assist the Schusterman Judaica curator with hiring and training interns, helping to organize their professional development in a range of museum careers and practices, and in close collaboration with different museum departments. Provide similar support for the museum’s Teens programs, such as the Teen Arts Council and STEAM Team, work with the Judaica Curator to mentor high-school students and develop a variety of workplace skills.
- Working closely with the Schusterman Judaica Curator and Learning, Community and Engagement, assist with organizing public programs and community outreach for adults and children, Jewish and non-Jewish organizations; support the organization of classes, lectures, and symposia as needed; help coordinate and run informal community events and seminars, such as adults ‘close looking sessions’; conduct tours of the collection and of special exhibitions, as necessary.
- Assist the Schusterman Judaica Curator in the preparation of exhibitions, as requested; carry out research, put together objects’ checklists, write loan correspondence, publication research and production, contribute to publication research, website development, and public programming.
- As directed by the Schusterman Judaica Curator, assist with new acquisitions: conduct research, create and maintain objects files and other museum records, communicate with Conservation, Registrars and the Provenance Curator. May be required to travel to examine items for acquisition.
- Respond to public enquiries from scholars, students, and general visitors, including requests of information on the museum’s collection, and input on objects’ images sent by email; as directed by the Schusterman Judaica Curator, assist visitors coming to the department and help with the identification of objects brought for examination.
- With guidance from the Schusterman Judaica Curator, assist in the production of a wide range of museum interpretative texts and exhibition-related materials as requested, including wall panels, object labels, gallery surveys, and press releases.
- Work with Public Relations, the Creative team, and the Schusterman Judaica Curator to propose and write social media posts and museum website material to ensure the digital visibility of the Judaica collection.
- Perform other duties as responsibilities necessitate.
Qualifications And Requirements
- Postgraduate degree in Art History, Jewish history and/or Jewish studies, demonstrating scholarly ability in the field. Proven interest and work in a particular area of Judaica.
- 3 to 5 years of in-depth curatorial and museum experience in the field.
- Reading and writing knowledge of biblical and modern Hebrew is essential; reading knowledge of Yiddish is preferred. Proficiency in another European language is desirable.
- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
- In-depth scholarly research skills, with excellent writing and presentation skills, and an ability to engage different audiences.
- Commitment to community and audience development and involvement.
- Working knowledge of standard office procedures and the MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Experience with museum databases. Knowledge of “The Museum System” (TMS) is preferred.
- Clear commitment to IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity, access), through projects and collaborations that foster a culturally inclusive and welcoming environment.
Salary And Schedule
Salary: $73,967 - $75,000
Full-Time, 35 hours per week
This position is affiliated with the United Auto Workers Union.
The MFA is an equal opportunity employer. The community and audience we serve is diverse, and we wish to foster that diversity in our workplace. Toward that end, the MFA does not discriminate against individuals in hiring, employment or promotion on the basis of race, religion, color, sex/gender, gender identity and gender expression, age, marital status, national origin, sexual orientation, citizenship, handicap or disability, veteran or military status, political belief, pregnancy, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law.
