Senior Specialist: Art and Museum Curator

Empowering Africa’s tomorrow, together…one story at a time.

Job Summary

The primary purpose of the Senior Specialist Curator: Absa Gallery & Money Museum is to strategically manage the Visual Arts and Money Museum (VAMM) portfolio. The VAMM portfolio includes the Absa Money Museum, Absa Archives, Absa Gallery, Absa L’Atelier, and Absa's art and numismatic collection. Focus on preserving Absa's heritage, whilst informing and educating audiences and Absa clients about Absa's cultural currency. This would include the display of Absa’s artwork across all sites. In addition, provide support to all business units, while managing and leveraging key Absa sponsorships and partnerships.

Job Description

Accountability 1

Administration

• Relationship management of suppliers.
• Ensure all suppliers are contracted in.
• Liaising with key strategic partners, identify and implement potential synergies.
• Coordinating of media interviews.
• Oversight of all contractual obligations.
• Mediation as and when necessary.

Accountability 2

Financials

• Responsible for portfolio budgets and expenditure.

Accountability 3

Policies and Governance

• Oversight (review, check and challenge) all policies and signing off thereof.
• Table policies at all appropriate forums for sign-off.
• Oversight of all governance.
• Table all potential risks at appropriate forums.

Accountability 4

Facilities

• Oversight of the Money Museum.
• Oversight of the Archives.
• Oversight of the Art Gallery.
• Oversight of the digitisation project and report back to the appropriate forum.

Accountability 5

Exhibitions

• Develop exhibition plan (BOW).
• Strategically identify events and leveraging opportunities of each exhibition.
• Negotiate with artists to exhibit in the Absa Gallery.
• Oversight of marketing, communication and PR plan.
• Liaising with printers and / or framers.

Accountability 6

Assets

• Determine artworks to be exhibited from the Absa collection across Absa buildings / regions.
• Ensure adequate control measures in place around the movement of all artworks across Absa sites.
• Develop Capital Project plan across all Absa sites, which will include the building decoupling, artwork commissions, artwork acquisitions and reframing of artworks.
• Ensure sign-off of the Capital Project plan at relevant forums.
• Oversight of all VAMM project implementation.
• Responsibility for VAMM acquisition strategy.
• Oversight of valuation of all VAMM assets and ensure their values are current.
• Commission artworks for specific projects.
• Sign-off on insurance.
• Develop and maintain deaccessioning strategy.
• Report on the deaccessioning process.
• Obtain approvals on the deaccessioning at relevant forums.

Accountability 7

Public Relations

• Spokesperson for the portfolio.
• Responsibility for all VAMM interviews (portfolio, art and heritage related to Absa brand).

Accountability 8

L’Atelier

• Develop the strategy for the Absa L'Atelier.
• Responsible for the oversight and management of operational implementation across Africa.
• Manage all stakeholder relations, includes rightsholders and partners.
• Draft, review, check and challenge all contracts in consultation with Group Legal.
• Provide career guidance and industry expertise to artists.
• Provide feedback and / or reports at relevant forums.

Accountability 9

Sponsorships

• Manage all stakeholder relations, includes rightsholders and partners.
• Provide support to Group Sponsorships where art is required.
• Provide feedback and / or reports at relevant forums.

Accountability 10

Thought Leadership

• Write and / or contribute to industry thought leadership discussions.

Role / person specification

Preferred Education

Required

• Degree in visual arts or cultural studies (or equivalent)

Preferred

• Postgraduate qualification.

Preferred Experience

• Ten years’ experience working within corporate environment.
• Ten years’ experience in South African and / or African art and / or heritage.

Knowledge and Skills

• Specialised knowledge of visual arts across Africa.
• Specialised knowledge of heritage and cultural sector across Africa.
• Specialised South African numismatic knowledge.
• Specialised knowledge of archival practice.
• Communication skills (verbal and written).
• Interpersonal skills.
• Advanced use of MS Office.
• Understanding of corporate environment.

Technical Competencies

• Writing and verbal communication skills.
• Art evaluation.
• Numismatic evaluation.
• Work independently for extended periods of time.
• Knowledgeable about best practice within the visual arts.
• Knowledgeable about best practice within the heritage sector.
• Knowledgeable about best practice within the Archival sector.
• Thorough knowledge of African art.
• Negotiating skills.
• Interacting with people on various levels.
• Strong administrative ability.

Behavioural Competencies

• Role is deadline driven and time-scarce.
• Management of internal and external relationships.
• Work non-regular hours.
• Managing workload pressure as the portfolio is large and multi-faceted.
• Role entails a lot of physical work (painting, transporting artwork, hanging artworks).
• Significant overtime as a result of exhibitions and / or artwork installation outside of core hours.
• Ability to travel for extensive periods.

Cognitive Competencies

• Learning & researching | Always willing to learn and improve their knowledge and understanding.
• Analysing | Able to synthesize lots of information and record it simply.

Education

Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)

Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.

Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised