WALTERS ART MUSEUM Associate Registrar Salary in the United States

Description

ABOUT THE WALTERS ART MUSEUM

The Walters Art Museum is among America’s most distinctive museums, forging connections between people and art from cultures around the world and spanning seven millennia. Located in Baltimore’s Mount Vernon neighborhood, the Walters is free for all. The museum’s campus includes five historic

buildings and 36,000 art objects.

Today, the Walters serves Baltimore and Maryland by embracing its role as educator and storyteller, using the collection as a vehicle of knowledge and cultural expression to support learning, dialogue, and community engagement. The museum is committed to public education, offering essential programs

that help people to connect art to their lives. The Walters’ Visitor Promise aligns staff and volunteers across the museum to preserve and share the works in our care for future generations, partner with communities, and create welcoming, accessible experiences for visitors. The museum offers challenging

and creative work opportunities by promoting collaboration, teamwork, and a culture that celebrates the diversity and inclusion of all. In December 2020, the museum finalized a set of multiyear diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion (DEAI) goals in alignment with the museum’s Strategic Plan and

grounded in the following commitments: expand the histories the museum examines and shares; partner with our communities; and center equity, inclusion, and accountability in our culture and decision-making.

Overview of Role

The Walters Art Museum is looking to fill the position of Associate Registrar to join the dynamic team of museum professionals that constitutes the Department of Conservation, Collections, and Technical Research. As part of a multi-disciplined team centered on the preservation, study, and installation of the Walters collection, this Associate Registrar coordinates management of the Walters’ permanent collection, associated storage spaces, and acquisitions program. The Associate Registrar provides assistance for the internal and external movement of art at the Walters, in conjunction with Collections, Installations, and Conservation staff. The Associate Registrar contributes to upholding best practices in collection stewardship by maintaining collections care practices as outlined in the Walters’ Collections Management Policy.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Permanent Collection:

• Manage, maintain, and care for collections in existing storage facilities;
• Undertake strategic planning for collection re-housing and storage relocations, including offsite storage;
• Work with the collections technicians on the movement of art within the museum as well as on location art pickups and deliveries;
• Plan and conduct ongoing collection inventory;
• Oversee unit’s maintenance of up-to-date locations in the collection database, including implementing processes and data entry;
• Process proposed acquisitions, and deaccessions; ensures proper documentation and that WAM’s Collections Management Policy and Procedures are adhered to/updated as needed; oversee packing, crating, and shipping of acquisitions to the collection;

• Work with and train the Assistant Registrar on projects related to rehousing and numbering the permanent collection;
• Oversee and plan regular schedule for collection rotations of light-sensitive objects;
• Assist Conservation with needs assessment for periodic cleaning of objects in galleries;
• Monitor collection safety requirements for special events and filming;
• All other duties assigned.

Loans and Exhibitions:

• Oversee the management of long-term loans: work with Assistant Registrar to prepare loan contracts, certificates of insurance, and condition reports; arrange renewals; oversee packing, crating, and shipping of long-term loans;
• Support installations and exhibitions by coordinating in-house WAM collection-based installations (tracking of checklists, schedules, conservation, display requirements, mount making, etc.);
• Serve as courier upon occasion;
• All other duties assigned.

Collections Management Database:

• Manage collections information and work with curators to standardize collection information data entry, implementing best practices for cataloguing of the museum’s varied collections and their associated metadata;
• Together with Head of Collections Management, establish data entry projects and priorities;
• Complete data entry projects as assigned, and supervise interns/volunteers in same, as appropriate;
• All other duties assigned.

Qualifications

Qualifications:

• B.A. degree with concentration in art history or related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience;
• Minimum five years’ experience in a museum registrar/collection management department, including experience handling both 2D and 3D fine art;
• Five years’ experience with client-server collections management relational database (The Museum System experience is highly preferred); or an equivalent combination of education, training and experience;
• Working knowledge of museum registrar/collection management best practices is required;
• Working knowledge of object cataloguing standards, with understanding and experience in developing protocols and standards for data entry;
• Knowledge of art conservation methods and materials is important;
• Knowledge of Crystal Reports preferred;
• Word processing and spreadsheet skills are essential;
• Effective time management and organizational skills;
• Demonstrated abilities in handling a variety of projects simultaneously and prioritizing long term projects versus daily departmental demands efficiently within teams;
• Effective oral, written, and interpersonal skills; ability to work as a team member as well as independently;
• Must be precise, accurate, well-organized, and detail oriented;

• Ability and judgment to safely handle a variety of works of art. May occasionally travel with ground and/or air shipments of art and oversee installations/deinstallations of artwork as a courier;
• May occasionally work late or weekend hours;
• Must be able to work sitting or standing for long periods of time;
• Must have ability to use stairs and climb ladders;
• Must be able to drive and have a valid driver’s license.

Annual Starting Salary:

$44.4K-$54.4K

The Walters Art Museum provides an excellent comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, dental, prescription, vision, subsidized transportation and parking, museum membership, short term disability, long term disability, life insurance, FSA (flexible spending account), 457b retirement, and free professional financial management counseling.

All employees must be legally authorized to work in the United States. The Walters Art Museum does not sponsor work visas.