Associate Collections Manager

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art•Los Angeles, CA

5d•$67,600 - $76,000

About The Position

The Associate Collections Manager will support departmental priorities and assist in overseeing the preservation, organization, accessibility, and safety of the Lucas Museumâs collection in storage. Reporting to the Head of Collections Management, this position requires a confident mastery of safe handling and archival packing methods for a variety of collection material including works on paper, paintings, textiles, and objects. Experience ordering and tracking supplies, managing parallel project schedules, assisting with the creation and maintenance of departmental policies and procedures, and cross-departmental collaboration in a museum environment is required. The Associate Collections Manager will oversee the work of entry to mid-level collections staff, working closely with the Head of Collections Management to provide training and daily oversight to ensure museum best practices are being followed. This position works closely with the Registration department to support incoming registration, collection inventory, maintenance of the collections database, and more. In addition, this position works alongside Art Preparation and Installation (API) and Exhibition Departments to support exhibition-related projects and workflows.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in art, art history, museum studies, arts administration, or a closely related field is required
5-8 years of experience in art handling, collections care, and museum best practices required
Strong proven experience in leadership roles on teams preferred
Experience working with teams preferred
Attention to detail and organization
Open, collaborative, and proactive communication skills are essential
Creative and flexible problem-solving skills
Aptitude for system and process creation
Extensive knowledge of art packing, handling and storage techniques
Experience with a variety of mediums and materials
A mastery of museum collections best practices and procedures
An understanding of basic conservation protocols and parameters
Familiarity with museum management processes is preferred
Experience with collections management databases required
Experience with transport and moving processes required, and background and understanding of rigging preferred.
Proven flexibility and adaptability in shifting priorities as needed and a projectâs priorities change
Strong collaborative spirit for working within a team
Proven record of ability to meet deadlines, preferably exhibition and project-based work
Self-motivated and independent
Able to integrate into existing projects and timelines that are underway
Enjoys detailed and focused work
Able to take ownership for a role and lead problem solving processes with confidence
Ability to manage multiple simultaneous projects and goals while considering finite resources

Nice To Haves

Object photography, photo editing and photography workflow management experience preferred

Responsibilities

Collaborates with the Head of Collections Management to develop strategic departmental goals; creates, deploys, and manages strategic plans, responsible for attaining strategic plan objectives
Assists with the creation, implementation, and management of Collections Management departmental policies and procedures including but not limited to storage access protocols, emergency response, environmental monitoring and the pest management program, rehousing guidelines, cross-departmental workorder systems, and more
Responsible for meeting monthly and annual budget standards; ensures equipment and archival supply inventory, meets par stock standards; responsible for establishing and maintaining supply chain vendor standards for quality, cost, and service levels
Responsible for the creation, implementation, and management of training programs for art handling, rehousing techniques, integrated pest management, and environmental monitoring that protect the high value assets of the museum
Supervises and oversees the daily activities of Collections Management technicians, interns, and on-call staff
Performs storeroom maintenance and upgrades including constructing shelving, installing earthquake mitigation, cleaning and organization as needed, both on-site at the museum and in off-site museum storage
Assists the Senior Director, Museum Services and the Head of Collections Management with long-term art storage related planning, including the inaugural collection move into the museum facilities and future collection moves
Assists with the management of department workflows and schedules to meet milestones and goals in collaboration with Collections Technicians, Registrarâs department, API, and outside contractors
Coordinates exhibitions workflows related to costume dressing, mannequins, and supports workflows related to mounts and framing in close collaboration with API and Installation, as assigned
Coordinates and oversees viewings of the collection with internal and external stakeholders, as assigned
Oversees and undertakes collections care processes and maintenance in storage and public/gallery spaces including collection movement, light cleaning, and rehousing
Coordinates collection photography, including overseeing incoming requests, hiring external photographers, and coordinating delivery of assets to stakeholders; may be asked to take preliminary photography of collection objects, as assigned
Coordinates and tracks day-to-day logistics of onsite and off-site collection moves
Special projects as designated by Head of Collections Management