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Collections and Exhibitions Assistant Registrar

Job Summary

The Assistant Registrar manages the acquisition of gifts and purchases of art, the administration of the Robert B. Jacobs Asian Art Conservation Lab, and the collections database use including but not limited to the image catalogue, collection documentation, and loan and exhibition records. The position participates in and assists in managing all aspects of the administration, documentation, and care of UMMA's collections, exhibitions, and loans. These duties support the proper care, handling, shipment, storage and preservation of objects comprising the Museum's permanent and loan collections as well as special exhibition objects. This position also supports the administrative needs of the department by ordering supplies, processing and tracking expenditures, training and supervising students and part-time staff, and fielding internal and external information requests.

This role does not offer visa sponsorship.

Who We Are

The University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) puts art and ideas at the center of campus and public life. We create experiences that enrich our understanding of one another, foster joy, and build a more just future. Through exhibitions, programs, research, and community partnerships we are redefining what a campus museum can be. Formally established in 1946, UMMA is always free and fully accessible, and serves as the primary site for engagement with visual art on the University of Michigan campus. The Museum's collection features over 21,000 objects and represents more than three millennia of global art-making. The Museum is proactively engaged with the most relevant social and cultural questions of our time--researching its collection to recalibrate past practices with today's ethical standards, activating civic engagement and democracy, challenging conventions of encyclopedism, and acknowledging and confronting historic exclusion.

Responsibilities*

60% Collections Management

+ Responsible for the processing of art acquisitions, including but not limited to: contacting donors and dealers, coordinating shipping, managing the intake and processing of objects, including condition reporting, processing gift and loan forms, creating object files, entering object information into the UMMA collections database, physically numbering objects, and submitting and tracking gifts of art through U-M central development;

+ Responsible for collection documentation (database and manual files) related to legal transfer of gifts, donor records, and exhibition records;

+ Regularly updates forms, policies, and procedures in collaboration with and upon consultation with UMMA's chief registrar and of U-M general counsel and development offices;

+ Assists with travel arrangements for couriers, artists, and installation technicians associated with incoming loans and exhibitions;

+ Conducts periodic collection inventories including, storage, campus loan, and extradepartmental collection inventories;

+ Assists with the management of collections storage areas including moving objects, tracking object location changes, and maintaining location information in the collections database;

+ Assists with arranging conservation treatment of collections objects;

20% Asian Conservation Lab

+ Manages all Asian Art Conservation Lab client interactions responding to public inquiries, receiving artwork, maintaining communication during treatment, and preparing all treatment documentation .and oversees the day-to-day running of the Asian Art Conservation Lab by ordering supplies, managing and tracking incoming and expenditures

+ Manages Asian Art Conservation Lab income through receiving, processing, and tracking income while ensuring process compliance with the university's financial policies and procedures;

10% Administration

+ Processes and tracks departmental expenditures to ensure compliance with project budgets and the university's financial policies and procedures;

+ Coordinates with vendors, UMMA, and U-M departments to incorporate vendors into the U-M vendor payment and tracking system;

+ Trains and supervises part-time temporary employees and interns on proper art handling techniques;

+ Manages part-time and contract photographers to digitally photograph all acquisitions, loans, and exhibitions;

+ Coordinates photography efforts with curators and communication staff to ensure there are the necessary collection and exhibition images for online exhibitions, outreach, and publications

+ Coordinates with PEL and art handling staff to manage access to objects and information for internal and external research and inquiries;

+ Manages phone, email, and mail inquiries concerning the Museum's collections;

+ Liaises with the Curatorial, Education, Exhibitions & Publications, Communications, and Development departments to provide information and registration support, as needed;

5% Incoming Loans

+ Assists with outgoing UMMA collection loans, reviews objects and object availability, prepares and reviews loan documents, as well as issuing of receipts and conditions reports, and maintenance of files;

+ Acts as a courier by accompanying outgoing and returning domestic and international loans of UMMA collection worksitems including while overseeing installation and deinstallation of objects from point of origination to final destinations;

5% Rights and Reproductions

+ Oversees the use of collection images in external, non-UMMA publications, productions, and educational efforts including receiving and evaluating requests, disseminating images, and tracking image uses;

+ Assists with regularly evaluating and redeveloping policies and procedures regarding the rights and reproduction policy to ensure compliance with the University of Michigan's copyright regulations;

+ Other collections and exhibition-related administrative projects as needed.

Required Qualifications*

+ Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, Art History, Museum Studies, Information Technology or related field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

+ 2+ years of progressively responsible experience in a museum setting, working with objects and collections or an equivalent combination of training and experience is required.

+ Overseeing the general care, display, and storage of significant collections of works of art, preferably including contemporary art.

+ Experience creating and maintaining reliable physical and digital records using collection databases.

+ Strong attention to detail.

+ Strong written and oral communication and organizational skills.

Modes of Work

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about thework modes (https://hr.umich.edu/working-u-m/my-employment/ways-we-work-resource-center/ways-we-work-implementation-group/modes-work) .

Additional Information

WORKING CONDITIONS

Flexibility to travel within Ann Arbor, throughout Michigan, nationally, and on rare occasions internationally, and to work hours coinciding with movement and availability of works and major exhibition events, which may include some evenings and weekends.

Work is performed in an office environment and requires the ability to operate standard office equipment and keyboards. Must have the ability to walk short distances, stand, bend and stoop, lift up to 50 pounds and drive a vehicle to deliver and pick up materials and objects.

Application Deadline

Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the eighth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended.

U-M EEO Statement

The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.

Job Detail

Job Opening ID

268165

Working Title

Collections and Exhibitions Assistant Registrar

Job Title

Museum Registrar Associate

Work Location

Ann Arbor Campus

Ann Arbor, MI

Modes of Work

Onsite

Full/Part Time

Full-Time

Regular/Temporary

Regular

FLSA Status

Nonexempt

Organizational Group

Acad & Fac Affairs

Department

UMMA Central Administration

Posting Begin/End Date

9/03/2025 - 9/17/2025

Salary

$55,000.00 - $60,000.00

Career Interest

Libraries & Museums

The Arts