Opportunities in conservation: Conservator (Objects) at The Henry Ford. SUMMARY OF PURPOSE Responsible for the execution and supervision of artifact conservation activities related to the preparation of exhibitions, loans, condition surveys, and the general care of assigned collections. Specific responsibilities include all aspects of preservation for the museum’s Historical Collections including but not limited to: mechanical, scientific, transportation, and timekeeping artifacts requiring expertise in the conservation of metal, glass, wood, painted surfaces, ceramics, and modern materials. Serves as conservation and/or preservation liaison on assigned projects including condition surveys, storage upgrades, artifact loans, grants, and exhibitions. Provides training and supervision of specialists, volunteers, and others as assigned. Reports to the Chief Conservator. ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS Carries out conservation examination, analysis, research, and treatment as assigned. Works in a manner that adheres to current standards and the American Institute of Conservation Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice. Remains abreast of current conservation and analytical techniques. Provides daily training, technical, and administrative supervision for assigned specialists and volunteers. Insures that work is conducted in a safe manner. Manages assigned staff, laboratories, work areas, and budgets. Manages the conservation component of assigned projects including storage upgrades, exhibitions, condition assessments, grant writing, and the operational maintenance of collections. This may include coordination with outside contractors. Conducts surveys of assigned collections in order to establish the treatment priorities and to advise treatment plans, storage upgrades, accessions and deaccessions. Documents treatments and the condition of artifacts using the established format for an online collections management system and digital photography. Ensures that labs are maintained in a clean, organized, and secure condition to insure both the safety of collections and staff. Carries out research on assigned conservation projects. Utilizes technical knowledge to assess the feasibility of using collection items in programming, exhibition, loans, and marketing displays. Provides technical information to curators and to the Chief Conservator regarding authenticity of artifacts. Performs other activities as necessary. Contributes to the effective team management of all problems, issues, and opportunities. Acts as a team player and provides expertise within team and with other teams as appropriate. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS Requires MS or MA in art conservation or equivalent training and 2 years supervised conservation treatment experience. Advanced knowledge of general conservation including microscopy, material science, elementary analysis, and photography. General ability to use Windows-based computers; good oral and written communication skills; good hand-eye coordination. General understanding of museum standards for exhibition, storage, and climate control. Experience working with functional and mechanical objects.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Sep 2014 13:38:47 +0000