Curator of the Indigenous Arts of the Americas

Michael C. Carlos Museum

Emory University

The Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University seeks an experienced professional and accomplished scholar to serve as curator for its collections of the Indigenous Arts of the Americas.

The ideal candidate will:

• hold a graduate degree (Ph.D. preferred) in Art History, Anthropology, Archaeology or a related discipline
• have a record of research focused on one or more of the Indigenous cultures of North, Central, and South America, in any time period.
• have at least two years of curatorial experience, including a record of successful exhibition projects and publications
• have experience collaborating on multidisciplinary projects in a university setting
• demonstrate a vision for engaging with diverse communities at Emory and across Atlanta

The Curator of the Indigenous Arts of the Americas reports to the Museum Director, serves on a team of highly skilled collections, education, and administrative staff, and provides leadership for cross-departmental collaboration within the museum, across Emory’s campuses, and across institutions in Atlanta. The Curator works in support of the Museum’s mission to provide innovative public programming, and critical engagement with objects, their makers, and the cultures they represent. The Curator will develop and present exhibitions, make acquisitions, steward donors, research, document, and publish the collections, develop didactic materials and programming, work with faculty and students, and establish and maintain strong community and institutional relationships across campus, in Atlanta, and throughout the South. The Curator also has the opportunity to teach university courses centered on the collections.

Indigenous Arts of the Americas Collection

The museum's collection of Indigenous Art of the Americas consists of more than 4,000 ancient and contemporary pieces from North, Central, and South America, spanning 4,000 years. For the cultures of ancient America, the museum’s holdings cover three major cultural centers, Mesoamerica, Lower Central America, and the Andes, and include a range of media such as textiles, ceramics, wooden sculptures, and metalwork. The Carlos Museum also is the current steward of ancient items found in Georgia, including pieces excavated from the Etowah Indian Mounds, an important cultural center that flourished during the Mississippian period and is affiliated with the Muscogee people, on whose land Emory’s Atlanta and Oxford campuses are built, and has been working with the Muscogee Nation regarding these items. The collection also includes 19th- and 20th-century textiles from Bolivia, Guatemala, and Panamá, and items from Native American and First Nations from the United States, from the 19th century to the present.

The Indigenous Art of the Americas collection has changed significantly over the course of the last century. In the late 1920s, Emory’s Margaret Ashley-Towle excavated at the Etowah Indian Mounds under the direction of Warren K. Moorehead of Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, and subsequently transferred some of the excavated materials to the Carlos Museum. Also in the early 20th century, the museum received gifts of Native American artifacts from the collections of W. H. Ferguson (Fulton County, GA), W. E. Hightower (Montgomery County, GA), and Reverend R. B. Ross (Sumpter County, GA), although the exact provenience of those pieces, primarily lithics, is unknown. Between 1988 and 1991, the collection was expanded with the acquisition of more than 1,300 works of ancient Central and South American art from Carol and William C. Thibadeau. Subsequent gifts from Cora W. and Laurence C. Witten, Virginia C. and Clay W. Aldridge, and the Alan Grinnell Ars Ceramica Collection added to the formation of the museum’s significant collection of art of the ancient Americas. More recent gifts include 19th- and 20th-century Maya textiles from the Bright Collection of Guatemalan Textiles; 19th- and 20th-century Native American art from the Philip Gainey estate; and late 20th- and early 21st-century pottery in the Puebloan tradition donated by Drs. Walter S. Melion and John M. Clum. Following the DEI, social justice, and climate change concerns of the new strategic plan, the museum has an interest in building its collection of more recent artworks by Native American and Indigenous artists from across the Americas.

Position Specifics

Curators at the MCCM are experts in their fields of study. Drawing upon the knowledge of their fields and good museum practices, they are communicators of ideas, facilitators of discussion, teachers for all levels, and advocates for the role of museums in society today.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide knowledge for shaping, caring for, and activating the collections for which they are responsible
  • Develop innovative, dynamic and collaborative curation strategies for the permanent collections
  • Work closely with Native American Nations and other Indigenous groups to build and share knowledge about the collections, create opportunities for greater inclusivity, access, and representation, and identify areas of community interest, value, and involvement; increased collaboration with the Muscogee Nation is a priority
  • Develop projects for monitoring, treating, and documenting items in the collection in close working partnership with the conservation department and Tribal representatives
  • Identify and coordinate research projects that will create new knowledge about the objects in their collections
  • Identify and research objects for acquisition, with a focus on contemporary Native American and Indigenous art
  • Research the collecting and provenance histories of individual objects in concert with the work of the museum’s provenance researcher
  • Work closely with Native American Nations on topics related to NAGPRA

• Participate in the development of exhibition concepts, both within their areas of speciality and in support of others
  • Develop exhibitions that support the overall mission of the museum, including engaging with contemporary Indigenous art
  • Collaborate with Indigenous and Native American communities, especially the Muscogee Nation, Emory faculty and students, and other community groups in Atlanta in the development of exhibitions and other programming
  • Develop strategies for engaging new and existing audiences, including artists and activists
  • Research, write, and publish within the Curator’s specialist field

• Collaborate in the development of public programs
  • Deliver and organize talks, lectures, symposia, workshops, and panel discussions
  • Work in support of the museum’s artist residency program, building relationships with contemporary artists, thinkers and social justice advocates

• Teach and support research within the university at Emory’s Atlanta and Oxford campuses
  • Work with faculty across departments to facilitate research, object-based teaching, and collections-based projects (including exhibitions)
  • Supervise students, interns, and volunteers to provide them with experience in museum practices, and support their studies or their professional interests
  • Serve on Museum-Faculty Advisory Boards

• Act as an advocate for the museum’s role in society
  • Develop and/or participate in initiatives that expand the museum’s audience
  • Participate in national and international forums within the museum field and in their respective field of research
  • Advocate, practice, and speak for ethical collecting
  • Advocate for the participatory museum
  • Support the museum’s artist residency program by developing relationships with contemporary artists, activists, and advocates

Qualifications

• A graduate degree (PhD preferred) in Art History, Anthropology, Archaeology or a related discipline. Exceptional candidates with MA degrees or PhD in progress will also be considered
• Expertise in one or more of the Indigenous cultures of North, Central, and South America, in any time period.
• A strong publication and/or exhibition record, including experience researching and writing exhibition catalogues
• At least three years of curatorial experience
• Experience building affiliate groups (including but not limited to donors and community advisory groups) and working with university faculty, staff, and student affinity groups
• Demonstrated experience collaborating with and consulting Native American and Indigenous communities and building strategies for community outreach
• Experience handling NAGPRA claims
• Experience with mentorship and teaching from objects in university settings or museums. An experienced collaborator who can work with faculty, students, and artists
• Demonstrated commitment to using the arts for social change. Experience engaging and collaborating with underrepresented communities, and of working with artists, and/or engaging with arts activism

Application link