Job no: 493139
Work type: Grant Funded
Location: Lewiston, ME
Categories: Academic Affairs: Museum of Art
Title: Henry Luce Curatorial Fellow in American Art
Position Purpose:
The Henry Luce Curatorial Fellow in American Art is a three-year position designed to provide an advanced scholar of American art with comprehensive, hands-on professional experience in curation, education, scholarship, and stewardship. Reporting directly to the Director of Bates College Museum of Art and serving as a member of the curatorial team, the Fellow builds the Museum’s capacity during a period of momentum and growth. The role focuses on researching the permanent collection, organizing exhibitions, and fostering deep curricular integration with college faculty and students. The Fellow is a dedicated steward of the Marsden Hartley Memorial Collection and the Marsden Hartley Legacy Project, spearheading public-facing scholarly initiatives that engage both the campus community and global audiences.
Job Duties:
- Utilize the permanent collection to create creative programming that connects local audiences and global art communities to the Museum.
- Contribute to the organization of annual rotations of the permanent collection.
- Generate innovative proposals for temporary exhibitions centered on the Museum’s American art holdings.
- Research the permanent collection within the scope of American art to identify strengths, evaluate weaknesses, and provide strategic recommendations for targeted future acquisitions and growth.
- Conduct proactive outreach to college faculty, particularly those new to utilizing the Museum, to review syllabi and recommend relevant objects to enrich course curriculum.
- Facilitate hands-on learning encounters, lead exhibition tours, and coordinate class visits within the Synergy Study Gallery.
- Research, promote, and critically engage with the Marsden Hartley Memorial Collection and the Marsden Hartley Legacy Project, building upon foundational grant funding.
- Lead and execute advanced, project-based scholarly outputs focused on the legacy of Marsden Hartley, including publications, symposia, workshops, exhibitions, or artist-in-residence programs.
- Work closely with the Education Curator and Assistant Education Curator to propose public programming related to the Fellow's areas of expertise.
- Act as a visible advocate for the Museum on campus and throughout the region, building partnerships that champion the tangible value of museums in higher education.
Minimum Qualifications:
Education
M.A. in Art History, American Studies, or a related field. Ph.D. is a plus.
Experience
- Experience in and ongoing commitment to object-based research
- Experience working in museums or galleries preferred
Skills and Knowledge
- Commitment to fostering engagement with original works of art in a college setting; work with a diverse group of faculty, staff, students and museum visitors on a daily basis.
- Excellent organizational, interpersonal, and communication skills.
- Be self-motivated and able to manage multiple projects simultaneously; ability to work independently as well as collaboratively as part of a team.
- Commitment to equity and inclusion, and serving the needs of a culturally and educationally diverse community.
If interested in applying, please complete your application along with a resume and cover letter.
Benefits:
Bates College offers competitive salaries, excellent benefits (health, dental, 9% retirement contribution with potential for an additional 3% match, sick leave, 24 days of vacation, 2 personal days, 13 paid holidays, dependent care subsidy, free parking, access to library and athletic facilities & more), and a supportive, collegial environment in a drug and smoke-free workplace.
Hiring Range: The hiring salary for this position is $60,000.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:
Bates College is committed to the principle of equal opportunity and providing an educational and work environment free from discrimination. The college prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, age, disability, genetic information or veteran status and other legally protected statuses in the recruitment and admission of its students, in the administration of its education policies and programs, or in the recruitment of its faculty and staff. Bates College adheres to all applicable state and federal equal opportunity laws and regulations. All college faculty, staff, students, contractors, visitors, and volunteers are responsible for understanding and complying with the Non-Discrimination Policy.
Inquiries concerning the college’s policies, compliance with applicable laws, statutes, and regulations (such as Title VII, Title IX, and ADA/Section 504), and complaints may be directed to Gwen Lexow, Title IX Officer, 207-786-6445 or via email at [email protected].
About Bates:
Bates is internationally recognized as a leading liberal arts college, attracting 2,000 students from across the U.S. and around the world.
Since 1855, Bates has been dedicated to educating the whole person through creative and rigorous scholarship in a collaborative residential community. Committed to opportunity and excellence, Bates has always admitted students without regard to gender, race, religion, or national origin.
Cultivating intellectual discovery and informed civic action, Bates prepares leaders sustained by a love of learning and zeal for responsible stewardship of the wider world. Bates engages the forces — intellectual trends, demographic changes, and technology — that are transforming higher education and the world into which our students graduate.
Bates has highly competitive admissions, graduates over 90 percent of its entering students, and more than half of its alumni earn graduate degrees. Bates employs 200 faculty members and 550 staff.
The college is proud of deep roots in the Lewiston/Auburn community, Maine’s second-largest urban area with a population of approximately 65,000. Bates is located on a beautiful, 133-acre, traditional New England campus in Lewiston, an emerging city with an entrepreneurial climate, a lively arts scene, and a dynamic business community. Bates is 35 miles north of Portland, 140 miles north of Boston, and 350 miles north of New York City.
Advertised: 13 Jul 2026
