Archivist

The Studio Museum in Harlem Archives consists of the institutional history of the Museum. It contains records of groundbreaking exhibitions, the foundational Artist-in-Residence program, and ongoing programs and relationships with the community of Harlem and beyond. The Archives reflect the emergence and ongoing representation of art by artists of African descent locally, nationally, and internationally.  

The Archivist will work under the direction of the Director of Collection and Exhibitions and in collaboration with the Associate Curator, Permanent Collection, Registrar, and Collections Database Manager to manage and further develop the long-term care and accessibility of the Archives. The Archivist will continue the folder-level organization of historic assets; provide access to materials as requested for research, publications, the website, and collection care preparations in support of the reopening of the Museum; and coordinate established record retention policies. They will manage Archives fellows and interns.  

 

Essential Job Duties and Responsibilities: 

• Process a large, multi-format collection of uncatalogued and unidentified assets to the folder level 
• Establish descriptive finding aids and container lists to create inventories for all historic materials 
• Facilitate research access to assets with mediated supervision  
• Establish protocols to distinguish public and non-public materials  
• Ensure at-risk items are properly housed and identified 
• Evaluate and oversee existing records retention policies 
• Continue to selectively digitize the archive and establish a sustainable long-term digitization plan together with the Collections Database Manager 
• Manage Archives fellows and students 
• Monitor Archives email and respond to external reference requests​ 

 

Key Stakeholders: 

Internal (excluding direct chain of command)

• Director and Chief Curator 
• General Counsel and Chief Strategy Officer  
• Chief Advancement Officer 
• Director of Development 
• Director of Media, Communications, and Content 
• Director of Education 
• Director of Public Programs and Community Engagement 
• Registrar 
• Collections Database Manager 

 

External

• The Studio Museum in Harlem Board Collection and Program Committee  
• Researchers​ 

 

Travel Requirements:    ☐ Yes   ☒ No 

Physical Demands: ☒ Yes   ☐ No 

• Lifting heavy boxes (approximately 20lbs) 
• Climbing short ladders 

 

Qualifications: 

Required 

• MS in library science with focus on archives 
• BA with an area of concentration in history, particularly African American history and or mid-century to contemporary art history 
• Five or more years of experience managing institutional archives, preferably at an art museum 

 

 Desirable

• Management or supervisory experience 
• Project management experience with digitization schemes 
• Demonstrated interest in furthering the scholarship around artists supported by the Studio Museum’s mission 

Application:

Please send your resume and cover letter to jobs@studiomuseum.org. Be sure to include "Archivist" in the subject line. No phone calls or faxes, please.

Please note that while careful consideration will be given to each submission, the Museum will only be able to contact those applicants whose knowledge, skills, and work experience best fit the requirements of the position.