Director of Collections Research and Interpretation, Barnes Foundation

Posted by The Barnes Foundation on July 19, 2022

The Director of Collections Research and Interpretation oversees the Barnes’s efforts to produce and disseminate new knowledge about its art collection and history. Reporting to the Deputy Director for Research, Interpretation and Education, the position shapes the overall research agenda for the institution, working in concert with the curatorial department to determine appropriate areas of focus. Bringing cutting-edge methodologies to the interpretation of visual culture, s/he thinks creatively about new ways to frame collections-related content and to engage audiences onsite and online.

The Director of Collections Research and Interpretation manages a small team of art historians conducting research on the collection. An established scholar, the Director also produces his/ her own research on the institution’s history and holdings, sharing this work through publications (both internal and external), public talks and other academic programs, and teaching courses in the adult education program. This position will also be key to the design and launch of a Center for Global Modernism, working in collaboration with the Deputy Director for Research and Interpretation, and will help forge relationships with the broader academic community.

Established as an educational institution, the Barnes Foundation carries out its mission by promoting appreciation of the arts and horticultural science, through the preservation, presentation, and interpretation of the collections of Albert C. and Laura L. Barnes.

Celebrated for its exceptional breadth, depth, and quality, the Barnes Foundation’s art collection has exceptional holdings of Impressionist, post-impressionist, and Modern art, and encompasses African Material Culture, Native American pottery and textiles, antiquities, Pennsylvania German decorative arts, metalwork, and more.

The Foundation engages diverse audiences through high-quality programs, including numerous special exhibitions and commissions, that reflect the range of the collection and our founders’ innovative educational vision. Recent initiatives have included the first US exhibition of the French painter Suzanne Valadon, a show that explored the enduring significance of our Native American collections, and a commission from Sir Isaac Julien that invites reflection on colonialism and the display of African material culture in museums in Europe and America.

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