Job Opportunities

Title: Assistant Curator & Art Bridges Cohort Project Manager

Reports to: Deborah Davenport and Stewart Stender Deputy Director and Chief Curatorial & Program Officer, Emelie Gevalt

Job Type: Full-time position; fixed term through summer 2027 with strong potential for renewal for several additional years; hybrid schedule with onsite work and travel required.

Overview:

Made possible through the generous support of the Art Bridges Foundation Cohort Program, this grant-funded position will play a central role in an exciting new cohort initiative at AFAM, led by the Museum in partnership with five other significant American art institutions. Working closely with AFAM’s Deputy Director, the Assistant Curator & Art Bridges Cohort Project Manager will take ownership of the following range of responsibilities related to the cross-institutional art sharing and exhibition development partnership. Additional projects will be assigned based on capacity.

Art Bridges Cohort

• Serve as primary project manager and point of contact for all aspects of the Art Bridges Cohort Program.
• Ensure streamlined communication between six institutional partners (including AFAM).
• Partner closely with the Deputy Director to provide creative and logistical leadership of cross-institutional loans and traveling exhibition development.
• Establish goals and spearhead the facilitation of all partner convenings throughout the course of the project.
• Participate in additional Art Bridges’ Cohort Program meetings, check-ins, and training sessions.
• Provide oversight of project timelines, action steps, and follow up.
• Collaborate with partner museums in the research and selection of objects from their permanent collections; travel to partner institutions as needed for research and cross-institutional conversations.
• Support the creation and coordination of interpretation plans for cohort projects; work with home and partner museums’ Learning & Engagement teams on programming ideas, implementation, and staff curatorial training.
• Collaborate with colleagues on marketing, press, and social media initiatives.

Exhibitions

• Develop exhibition proposals and checklists; pursue loans and funding; develop ideas for interpretation and design; research objects and draft label copy; prepare articles for press and exhibition catalogs.
• Liaise with external scholars and institutions regarding exhibition loans, research, and programming.
• Attend and participate in periodic exhibition design and production meetings with AFAM staff.
• Represent the curatorial team with in-person and virtual presentations as exhibitions develop.

Collections

• Research objects from across AFAM’s collection; add to object files.
• Update existing cataloging and labels for the museum’s online collections database.
• Assist with the review of potential acquisitions and donations and in the preparation for quarterly Collections Committee meetings.
• Oversee collection evaluation projects.
• Contribute to the cultivation of prospective donors.

Research & Writing

• Pursue additional research and writing projects—on AFAM’s virtual platforms and elsewhere—relevant to the Museum’s collection and exhibitions as opportunity allows.

Qualifications

• Two to three years of museum experience, or equivalent experience in another cultural/arts organization.
• Master’s degree or equivalent experience in art history, museum studies, material culture, or a related field.
• Must have exceptional attention to detail and strong project management skills.
• Collaborative approach to communication.
• The successful candidate must be a creative and a proactive problem-solver.
• Interest in and commitment to telling underrepresented stories.
• Knowledge of the fields of folk and self-taught art is a plus.

Learning and Engagement & Public Programs

• Partner with the Learning and Engagement team to develop and participate in public programming for
• Conduct public tours of exhibitions on view.

Salary & Benefits

• The salary is $60,000 – $63,000 annually depending on qualifications and experience. The Museum provides competitive compensation and generous benefits for all eligible employees.

All job offers are contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

To apply

• Please send resume, cover letter, 5-page writing sampler and 2 letters of recommendation to jobs@folkartmuseum.org. No phone calls, please.
• Application deadline: February 4, 2026

The American Folk Art Museum is located at 2 Lincoln Square in midtown Manhattan. The administrative office and storage facility for the museum is in Long Island City, Queens. The position requires in-person attendance several days per week at our Queens location.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The American Folk Art Museum provides equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, pregnancy, citizenship status, marital status or domestic partner status, genetic information, gender identity, military status and any other category protected by Federal, State, and City employment law.

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Title: Art Bridges Cohort Collections Assistant

Reports to: Director of Collections, Exhibitions, and Research Services, Anna Schwartz

Job Type: Full-time position; fixed term through summer 2027 with strong potential for renewal for several additional years; hybrid schedule with onsite work required.

Overview:

Made possible through the generous support of the Art Bridges Foundation Cohort Program, this grant-funded position will play a supportive role in an exciting new cohort initiative at AFAM, led by the Museum in partnership with five other significant American art institutions. The position provides essential support for the exhibition planning, implementation, and loan activity associated with the Cohort Program and other projects, as well as contributing to the general care, management, and documentation of the Museum’s art collections.

Art Bridges Cohort

• Attend the hybrid 8-week training Collections Care Apprenticeship Training, consisting of 1-week in person at Art Bridges headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, 5 weeks of virtual coursework, and a final 2-week in-person training at a conservation lab.
• Participate in Art Bridges’ Cohort Program regular meetings, check-ins, training sessions, and convenings.
• Support the completion of Art Bridges reports, art sharing forms, and any other additional documentation for the cohort, including object and exhibition files.
• Under the supervision of the Senior Collections & Exhibitions Manager, travel to Cohort member sites to support installs and deinstalls as needed.
• Provide additional assistance with aspects of the Art Bridges Cohort project as assigned.

Exhibition Coordination

• Assist Senior Collections & Exhibitions Manager with outgoing loan coordination and preparation. Conduct condition reports and compile packing, shipping, conservation, and other related estimates.
• Assist Collections and Curatorial teams with exhibition development, planning, and implementation, including object research, updating, and maintaining object checklists, generating loan agreements, and coordinating with partner institutions and internal staff.

Collections Care

• Assists Collections staff with administrative tasks related to registration, cataloging, object research, care, and documentation.
• Assist Assistant Registrar & Collections Database Manager with the intake and cataloging of new acquisitions. Update and expand existing object records in TMS in accordance with established procedures and guidelines.
• Help facilitate access to collections and object files in collaboration with Director of Collections, Exhibitions, and Research Services.
• Assist Curatorial and Collections teams with the review of potential acquisitions and donations and in the preparation of proposals for quarterly Collections Committee meetings.
• Provide Curatorial and Collections support for collection evaluation projects.
• Other duties as needed/assigned.

Qualifications

• Two to three years of museum experience, or equivalent experience in another cultural/arts organization.
• Must have exceptional attention to detail and strong project management skills.
• Collaborative approach to communication.
• The successful candidate must be creative and a proactive problem-solver.
• Interest in and commitment to telling underrepresented stories.
• Knowledge of the fields of folk and self-taught art is a plus.

The above statements in this job description include the general duties and level of work performed by an employee assigned to this position. They do not claim to describe all the functions of the position. The employee may be assigned other duties, and the essential functions may change or be change from time to time.

Salary & Benefits

• The salary is $58,000 – $60,000 annually depending on qualifications and experience. The Museum provides competitive compensation and generous benefits for all eligible employees.

All job offers are contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

To apply

• Please send resume and cover letter to jobs@folkartmuseum.org. No phone calls, please.
• Application deadline: February 4, 2026

The American Folk Art Museum is located at 2 Lincoln Square in midtown Manhattan. The administrative office and storage facility for the museum is in Long Island City, Queens. The position requires in-person attendance several days per week at our Queens location.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The American Folk Art Museum provides equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, pregnancy, citizenship status, marital status or domestic partner status, genetic information, gender identity, military status and any other category protected by Federal, State, and City employment law.

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Volunteer Opportunities

Volunteers are vital to the success of the Museum, contributing countless hours to visitor services, education projects, administrative assignments, and special events. The Museum is always seeking energetic and committed volunteers interested in folk art and self-taught artists. While each opportunity requires specific skill sets, every qualified candidate must be dedicated, communicate effectively, possess basic computer skills—including familiarity with the internet—and have a valid email address.

To apply: Please complete the volunteer application form here.

If your skills and qualifications meet our immediate needs, you will be contacted for an interview. If not, your application will be kept on file and you will be contacted if an appropriate position becomes available. Only individuals authorized to work for the museum in the United States will be accepted into the internship program. The museum will consider expressions of interest in providing volunteer services to the museum from non-work-authorized individuals.

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Internships

The Museum offers internships for college and university students, graduate students, and emerging professionals interested in museum careers. The goal of an internship is to provide practical experience as well as a general understanding of the role of an individual department within a larger museum setting. Academic internships are by semester or full year.

For general internship queries, send a résumé and cover letter to education@folkartmuseum.org, stating the departments you are interested in working in, the skills you bring, and how you hope to contribute to the department.

Fellowships

Visit the Fellowship page to learn about current opportunities.