They lead the curatorial staff, directing the curatorial contribution to the Colby Museum’s artistic, research, and interpretive vision. The head curator supervises and mentors five full-time staff as well as student interns, ensuring teamwork, effective management, and innovative work that is also pragmatic in its approach. They lead the development of a multi-year exhibition schedule, including Colby-organized projects that travel to other venues, in partnership with the museum’s director and the director of exhibitions and publications. They shape and enact the collections development strategy, and oversee acquisitions and deaccessions with guidance from the Collections and Impact Committee of the museum board of governors. They direct the ongoing research and presentation of its renowned collection, and partner with collections and operations staff to ensure the comprehensive stewardship of the museum’s holdings. They collaboratively develop accessible interpretation strategies with the engagement team and other constituencies. The head curator partners with the Lunder Institute for American Art to help identify mission-aligned opportunities related to fellowships, programming, and areas of inquiry that can benefit from research, field-wide dialogue, and documentation. Beyond these responsibilities, The head curator curates a selection of projects within the multi-year cycle of exhibitions and museum publications, and contributes new scholarship. 

Day to day, the head curator balances creativity and ambition with pragmatism as they manage staff, projects, budgets, timelines, and workloads. They maximize resources and actively contribute to fundraising in partnership with Advancement staff in order to allow the museum to remain a generative and innovative institution. They maintain active relationships with supporters and partners, and represent the museum in a variety of contexts in Maine and beyond. 

As part of the museum’s senior team, the head curator provides ongoing institutional-level advice to the museum’s director. They foster an equitable and inclusive culture that prioritizes collective accomplishment and values a diversity of perspectives and expertise in project development. They seek to increase access to the museum for Colby students, faculty, families, and alumni; artists, peers, and scholars; and local and regional communities, strengthening the Colby Museum’s reputation as one of the nation’s leading academic museums and as a destination for American art. With the museum’s director, other senior leaders, and the museum’s board, the head curator plays an essential role envisioning, planning, and leading institutional initiatives that significantly advance the museum’s mission and goals.  

The museum’s trajectory of evolution and increased visibility is entering a new phase. In the coming years the Colby Museum aspires to strategically adapt and expand its facilities to support an innovative model for the care of and access to its collection, with the possibility of an art conservation program that would be uniquely designed for Colby’s liberal arts context. These ambitions seek to promote and encourage interdisciplinary research, learning, and pathways at the undergraduate level while increasing the museum’s capacity to manage its collection and engage wider audiences with art, including launching a new art-on-campus program. The head curator will be an essential partner and leader in researching and advancing these initiatives.