Position Available: Academic Curator, Department of History of Art and Architecture, University of Pittsburgh
The Department of History of Art and Architecture at the University of Pittsburgh is strongly committed to excellence in research, and to inclusive teaching and curatorial practices that promote collaboration, diversity, and expanding our interdisciplinary presence and public outreach. To further our leadership in these areas we seek to hire an Academic Curator, pending budgetary approval. As a tenure-track faculty member in an academic department (HAA), the Academic Curator will be a dynamic individual working to advance the teaching and research missions of the department in collaboration with a range of academic and museum partners. The Academic Curator will play a key role in coordinating the initiatives of the Pittsburgh Constellations Consortium, a working group of local museum collections and academic departments spearheaded by HAA, which has been launched by a large grant from the A.W. Mellon Foundation.
In addition to fostering collaborative research, the Academic Curator’s duties will include: supervising the academic internship program of HAA, which places graduate and undergraduate interns in projects sponsored by Consortium partners; teaching two courses per year in HAA and its museum studies minor, at least one of which will focus on professionalization; leading a week-long faculty and grad student summer workshop using Consortium collections (these workshops are supported by Mellon funding for the next three years [2016-2018]); and maintaining a scholarly research profile in the applicant’s field through peer-reviewed publications, which may be collaborative and co-authored, and may include digital elements and community engagement as significant components.
Since this is a new type of academic position in a university department, HAA is open to candidates with a variety of training paths. A Ph.D. is required, in art history or a related field, as is teaching experience at the university level, along with a strong interest in pedagogy inside and outside the classroom. We also anticipate candidates will have significant curatorial and/or museum experience.
The ideal candidate is expected to have a well-developed area of research expertise, but also broad intellectual interests crossing fields and disciplines, a wide-ranging knowledge of professional museum practices, and proficiency in the digital environment. The position requires strong interpersonal and organizational skills, excellent oral and written communication abilities, and the wherewithal to collaborate effectively and collegially across disciplines and manage multiple projects and deadlines independently.
This appointment will begin September 1, 2016. Applications are due no later than December 15, 2015 and should be sent electronically as a single PDF file to HAA Administrative Assistant, Corrin Trombley (cot12@pitt.edu; phone: 412.648.2400). The file should have a cover letter that includes a research and teaching statement and discusses how this appointment furthers the applicant’s professional goals. It should also include a curriculum vitae, three letters of reference*, a brief teaching portfolio, a description of the applicant’s curatorial/museum experience, and a writing sample or publication. The University of Pittsburgh is an Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity Employer. Women, members of minority groups under‐represented in academia, veterans, and disabled are especially encouraged to apply.
*letters of reference can be sent in separately either by email or hard copy.
