Direct message the job poster from the Design Museum
Rebecca Hardy
People Manager
Overview
The Design Museum is seeking to appoint a Curator to the cultural design hub Future Observatory. Future Observatory is the Design Museum's national research programme for the green transition, run in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). Future Observatory supports a £25mil portfolio of design research (2022 – 2025) and has established a growing UK-wide network of academic institutions, industry partners and government bodies through its exhibitions, journal, symposia, round tables and research partnerships. The Design Museum serves as a unique space for dialogue and collaboration across academia, industry and government.
This role will suit a self-motivated and confident individual with excellent curatorial, education and project management skills, with the flair and creativity to maximise visitor engagement within a museum context. The Curator will have a direct reporting line to the Curatorial Director. Applicants should note that this role will be embedded at the Design Museum and will involve working closely with the Design Museum executive and any other staff appointed as part of the Future Observatory endeavour.
Job scope
The Curator will have operational responsibility for two key areas of the Future Observatory programme: the Design Researchers in Residence and the Future Observatory display, onsite at the museum. The Design Researchers in Residence is a research residency scheme that supports emerging design thinkers at the start of their careers to spend ten months developing a new research project in response to a theme. The residency culminates in an exhibition and publication. The Future Observatory display is a free annual showcase of design research-in-progress that invites audiences to engage with the innovative ideas being developed within universities, research hubs and design studios across the UK. This role will curate up to two displays per year at the museum, managing the associated finance and administration with assistance from the Future Observatory programme coordinator and a freelance project manager(s).
Detailed Job description & person-specification available on our careers page.
Contract: fixed-term, until 31 March 2025
Closing date: Wednesday 10 July 2024, midnight
Interviews: 22-23 July 2024
Application process
For all the latest job vacancies at the Design Museum, please visit our Careers page to apply via our online portal. For more information about how to apply for this role, please visit the ‘how to apply’ section on the vacancy listing.
Seniority level
Associate
Employment type
Contract
Job function
Design, Art/Creative, and Research
Industries
Environmental Quality Programs, Non-profit Organizations, and Museums, Historical Sites, and Zoos
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In June 2011, Sir Terence Conran donated £17.5 million to enable the museum to move in 2016 from the warehouse to a larger site which formerly housed the Commonwealth Institute in west London.
A registered charity, the museum's innovative exhibitions, partnerships, research and learning programmes evidence how design can enable this planet and its inhabitants to thrive. Our landmark building in Kensington is the centre of our national network and a global hub for the transformative potential of design.
Some of London's most curious and fascinating museums are absolutely free of charge. In fact, there's more free museums, than there are museums that charge an entrance fee.
Museum director Sharon Ament said that one reason for the move was "a failing building with problematic entrances and a location which is difficult to find". A competition was held to find an architectural firm to design the new building, with over 70 firms taking part.
At 100,000 square feet, the new building is three times the size of the old, with spaces for conversation, programs, and hands-on creation as well as exhibitions.
In response to these challenges, a group of civic planners and architects emerged, led by the likes of John Nash, Charles Barry, and Joseph Bazalgette. These visionaries transformed London with grand plans like the construction of Trafalgar Square, the Houses of Parliament, and the Thames Embankment.
Julie Bevan is a passionate leader and a believer in museums as places of belonging, imagination, and transformation. In 2022 she joined the team at Museum London as Executive Director.
Christine Riding was appointed Director of Collections and Research at the National Gallery in February 2023, having been the Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department and Curator of British Paintings for four years.
Julie Bevan is a passionate leader and a believer in museums as places of belonging, imagination, and transformation. In 2022 she joined the team at Museum London as Executive Director.
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