Curatorial Fellow

Title: Curatorial Fellow

Job Type: Full-time, 12-month, beginning summer 2025

Reports to: Executive Director

Application Deadline: March 28, 2025

Raynham Hall Museum is now accepting applications for a one-year curatorial fellow to research and document the museum’s decorative and fine arts collections. The research will culminate in the publication of a scholarly catalog as well as an exhibition highlighting the importance of Raynham Hall Museum’s collection within art and history, speaking to the culture and economy of colonial New Amsterdam and New York, and the transatlantic slave trade. As the much-anticipated 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States approaches, this publication and exhibition will call attention to our collections and tell the complex, multifaceted stories of life in Oyster Bay and the broader region, and their importance to American history.

The curatorial fellow will gain practical, hands-on experience and receive guidance from Raynham Hall Museum staff, with additional mentorship from the Chief Curator and Director of Collections of Preservation Long Island. The fellow will hone their research, scholarship, writing, exhibition creation, content creation, public program development, and collections management skills. 

Raynham Hall Museum preserves and interprets the home of Robert Townsend, a central member of George Washington’s Culper Spy Ring. Transformed into a Victorian villa in the 1850s, the house offers two eras of interpretation, with the front of the house showcasing the period of the American Revolution, and the back of the house preserving a late 19th-century aesthetic. The collection comprises approximately 6,000 objects and archival materials from around the world that document the Townsend family, Oyster Bay, and the greater Long Island area. Spanning over 300 years, the collection gives us a deeper understanding of the Townsend family and their impact on the world in which they lived. The collection contains objects such as furniture, works of art, household accessories, textiles, toys, and games, and the archive includes objects such as personal correspondence, account books, ledgers, and photographs.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with the Executive Director, Collections Manager, and Collections Committee on identifying and selecting key artifacts to be featured in the collections catalog
• Research objects within the collection
• Write interpretive text for the collections catalog, collections database, exhibition, and public programs 
• Research and recommend graphic designers for publication; coordinate professional photography 
• Provide content for the museum’s website and social media to increase awareness and understanding of the museum and its collections
• Curate an exhibition that aligns with the collections catalog and the Semiquincentennial
• Collaborate with the Collections Manager and Director of Education and Public Programs in exhibition design, research, and public programs

Qualifications

• Recent graduates or graduating students from a Master’s or PhD program from various backgrounds, including decorative arts, American studies, history, museum studies, material culture, and/or art history
• Self-motivated, team player with cross-disciplinary thinking
• Emerging professional with excellent research and writing skills
• Experience in object research, collections management, and exhibition development 
• Strong project management skills
• Curatorial or related experience preferred
• Proficient in Microsoft Office, Google, Adobe Suites, and social media platforms

Travel Requirements

Local and regional travel is expected for research.

Salary & Benefits

$50,000, one-year, full-time position. Benefits include paid holidays, vacation, sick leave, and a health insurance stipend.

Raynham Hall Museum is an equal opportunity employer that considers all candidates for employment regardless of race, color, gender, gender identification, age, national origin, creed, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or political affiliation. 

How to Apply

Applications will be accepted through March 28, 2025. Applications must include: a cover letter, resume, and writing sample (4 pages or less).

Please send your application as a single PDF and title it with your name and “Curatorial Fellow Search.” Please email your application to Jessica Pearl, jpearl@raynhamhallmuseum.org.