Associate Registrar, Loans & Exhibitions

Who We Are

Founded in 1926, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is a private, not-for-profit educational, historic, and cultural institution that owns and operates one of the largest and best-known museum complexes in the world. Our mission is “that the future may learn from the past” through preserving and restoring 18th-century Williamsburg, Virginia’s colonial capital. We engage, inform, and inspire people to learn about this historic capital, the events that occurred here, and the diverse peoples who helped shape a new nation.

Today, Colonial Williamsburg is the largest living history museum in the U.S. The Historic Area is the 301-acre restored colonial capital with 88 original buildings and 525 buildings reconstructed to how they appeared in the 18th century through extensive archaeological, architectural, and documentary research. The Historic Area is staffed by highly trained, historically dressed interpreters and expert tradespeople who bring the 18th century to life. The Foundation also owns and operates two world-class museums, the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum, and the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, The Bob and Marion Wilson Teacher Institute, and a renowned research library, the John D Rockefeller Jr Library.

Additionally, Colonial Williamsburg is home to five world class accommodations at the Williamsburg Inn, Williamsburg Lodge Autograph Collection, the Griffin Hotel, the Williamsburg Woodlands Hotels and Suites and the unique Colonial Houses in the Historical Area. Visitors may also indulge in food and drink at our many on site restaurants and taverns that blend a historically inspired dining experience with today’s evolved tastes. Each year over 5 million people visit Williamsburg and another 20 million engage with us digitally.

About the Position

Works collaboratively with registration team to create and maintain permanent archive of accurate and full records documenting the Foundation’s 74,000-object collection of fine, decorative, folk, useful, and mechanical arts located in multiple buildings on campus; and manages domestic and international incoming and outgoing loans. Coordinates packing, shipping and receiving logistics, prepares documentation for incoming and outing objects, manages the outgoing loan approval process, prepares and signs loan agreements, and obtains insurance. Conducts and reconciles collection inventories for asset accountability and control, creates records and initial cataloguing for incoming objects, and tracks object locations in TMS (The Museum System), the collections management system. Coordinates TMS upgrades and training for Division staff.

Essential Functions:

1. Coordinates the Outgoing Loan Review process with the Outgoing Loan Review Committee.
2. Summarizes findings for final recommendation of the committee and sent to Chief Mission Officer for approval. Prepares loan agreements and has signatory authority for them, arranges for Certificates of Insurance and monitors their expirations.
3. Maintains electronic and physical records pertaining to outgoing loans and is responsible for keeping renewals current. Works with assistant registrar to coordinate packing and shipping logistics of antiques.
4. Works closely with registrars, curators, conservators, museum staff and lending museums to ensure that collections and loans are properly packed, handled, transported, installed, protected and monitored.
5. Serves as courier as needed and coordinates all courier trips for Foundation objects.
6. Documents all incoming and outgoing objects by preparing receiving and shipping reports and completing incoming and outgoing condition reports.
7. Creates new collections management system records for incoming objects and provides initial cataloguing of them.
8. Has primary responsibility for updating object locations in the collections management system and maintains physical records of object moves for asset control.
9. Works closely with collections staff to analyze and resolve discrepancies in object locations and inventories.
10. Coordinates upgrades with Information Technology and staff training for TMS, the collections management database.
11. Provides TMS assistance to Division staff and assists curators, conservators and registrars with collections management database questions and reporting.
12. As assigned by the registrar, conducts and reconciles inventories of collections objects located throughout the historic area and art museums.
13. Works collaboratively with exhibitions team to coordinate exhibition installations and deinstallations including final inventories for exhibitions installations.
14. Prepares collection location reports and coordinates moving logistics with curators, conservators and registrars for exhibitions and special projects.
15. Oversees TMS exhibitions module to include training staff on use and working to implement features into operational procedures.
16. Assists curators, conservators and registrars with art handling for storage management, inventory, and exhibition installation in both the museum and historic buildings utilizing best museum practices.
    
    

Required and Preferred Education and Experience: 

Required: General knowledge of decorative and folk art gained through a four-year degree in museum studies, art history, history, material culture, or a related field and 4 years of experience in the registration department of a medium-to-large sized museum with experience working with incoming and outgoing loans. Experience working with museum collection management databases.
Preferred: Master’s degree in art history, history, museum studies, material culture or a related field and 2-4 years’ experience in the registration department of a museum. Experience working with The Museum System (TMS) collections management database.

Qualifications:

• Ability to communicate well both orally and in writing.
• Ability to establish and maintain complex record-keeping systems, including the use of collections management system software for this purpose.
• Ability to establish priorities in order to meet deadlines and work under pressure.
• Well-organized, detail-oriented and knowledge of best practices in museum registration and collections management, art handling and loans.
• Experience using Microsoft Office Suite, and proficient in using TMS, the collections management system, for records management.
• Ability to lift and carry items up to 25 pounds and walk for extended periods of time.