Exhibition Designer at The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Job Title: Exhibition Designer

Job Status: Full-time

Location: New York, NY

Salary: $80,000 – $85,000

About The Metropolitan Museum Of Art

The Met presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world for everyone to experience and enjoy. The Museum lives in two iconic sites in New York City—The Met Fifth Avenue and The Met Cloisters. Millions of people also take part in The Met experience online.

Since its founding in 1870, The Met has always aspired to be more than a treasury of rare and beautiful objects. We are committed to fostering a collaborative and respectful work environment with a staff as diverse as the audiences we engage. Our staff members are art lovers who are passionate about working toward a common goal: creating the most dynamic and inspiring art museum in the world.

At The Met, every staff member – from security officers to researchers to scientists and beyond – lives by our core values of respect, inclusivity, collaboration, excellence, and integrity.

Respect: Engage one another with collegiality, empathy, and kindness, always.

Inclusivity: Ensure that all are and feel welcome and valued.

Collaboration: Reach across boundaries to exchange ideas and work together toward our shared mission.

Excellence: Lead the cultural world in quality and expertise—and inspire curiosity and creativity.

Integrity: Hold ourselves to the highest moral standards, admit when we fall short, and then evolve.

GENERAL STATEMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES:

The Exhibition Designer works under the Design Manager, Exhibition Design, and collaborates with other members of the Exhibition Design team. The position will realize exhibitions and installations from concept to production, including construction administration, in collaboration with curators, conservators, and the museum’s project and construction managers. This includes producing presentation materials, renderings, and construction drawings as needed from preliminary space planning and budgeting exercises through concept, schematic, and design development phases. In addition to designing exhibitions, this role will be responsible for designing medium- and smaller-scale permanent collection renovation projects, in consultation with the Design Manager.

The Exhibition Designer must have the capacity to collaborate with all members of the 30+ member design department, which includes Graphics, Lighting Design, Production, and Operations. A successful candidate will be a collegial and collaborative problem solver who can exercise a wide range of creative strategies and has a comprehensive understanding of best museum practices.

The Exhibition Designer must have the capacity to support the design team in all phases of an exhibition and be able to effectively communicate with external consultants from case manufacturers to architects, designers, media consultants, and other types of expertise in order to realize needs of display and exhibition experience. They should have experience creating design documents, familiarity with construction bid packages, custom detailing, and possess the technical and rendering skills (Photoshop, AutoCAD, etc.) to develop, present, and test design ideas visually. This person will collaborate with all Design Managers to bring enhanced design potential to shows across locations, create presentation renderings, and research visual / fabrication materials. This person should also be available to support institutional projects that require rendering, three-dimensional thinking, and/or visitor experience design.

Note: Please include cover letter and portfolio with your application

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES:

  • Support exhibition design team across locations to enhance design and realize exhibitions
  • Architectural design from research and concept through execution/production supervision
  • Prepare design document drawings (floor plans, sections, elevations, and detail drawings), case lists, and schedules for internal museum reviews and construction bid documents
  • Build 3d models for design and presentation purposes
  • Coordinate fabrication with in-house production team, Met Buildings Department, or outside vendors when needed
  • Help facilitate communication with all Design Managers during the final installation process of all major projects, installations, or exhibitions as assigned
  • Possess a high level of organization and file management
  • Other duties as assigned
  • Other related duties as assigned.

REQUIREMENTS & QUALIFICATIONS:

Experience and Skills:

  • At least two to four years of experience in exhibition design, industrial design, scenic design, or architectural design
  • Full knowledge of construction techniques, fabrication skills, materials, and project management
  • Knowledge of AutoCAD, Vectorworks, Rhino, and/or 3ds Max
  • Strong organizational and design presentation skills
  • Experience and knowledge of proper art handling procedures and art or object installation and display experience preferred
  • Good communication skills and ability to function as part of a team
  • Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines
  • Background in architecture preferred

Knowledge and Education:

  • B.A. degree in exhibition design, industrial design or equivalent field of work is required. MFA or MArch preferred
  • Knowledge of construction techniques is required
  • Museum exhibition design experience preferred
  • Portfolio submission required

Compensation Range:

  • Pay Range: $80,000 – $85,000
  • The advertised pay scale reflects the good faith minimum and maximum salary range for this role. The advertised pay scale is not a promise of a particular wage for any specific employee. The specific compensation offered to a candidate may be dependent on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, the candidate’s experience, education, special licensing or qualifications, and other factors.

Benefits Offerings

The Museum provides competitive compensation, and generous benefits and perks for all eligible employees. Note: Benefits Offering may differ based on Employee Status.

  • Medical, dental, vision and life insurance
  • 403(b) basic retirement plan and optional matching retirement plan with an outstanding employer match
  • Considerable paid time off, including annual leave, sick leave, and 13 Museum holidays
  • Long-term disability coverage
  • Flexible Spending Accounts & Health Savings Account (pre-tax income for eligible health care expenses)
  • Commuter benefits (pre-tax income for parking or mass transit expenses)
  • Free financial-planning services
  • Financial assistance for relevant coursework, seminars, and training programs
  • 25% discount for staff in Museum shops
  • A subsidized staff cafeteria
  • Access to the Museums Council pass, which grants free admission to various museums and cultural institutions

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Research shows that women and people from underrepresented groups often apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. We recognize that it is highly unlikely that someone meets 100% of the qualifications for a role. If much of this job description describes you, then please apply for this role.

The Met is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, The Met will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed in this process, please contact benefits@metmuseum.org.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art provides equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, age, mental or physical disability, pregnancy, alienage or citizenship status, marital status or domestic partner status, genetic information, genetic predisposition or carrier status, gender identity, HIV status, military status and any other category protected by law in all employment decisions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, compensation, training and apprenticeship, promotion, upgrading, demotion, downgrading, transfer, lay-off and termination, and all other terms and conditions of employment.