18th Street Arts Center

Los Angeles, CA

Director of Residencies and Exhibitions

18th Street Arts Center is searching for an experienced arts leader for the position of the Director of Residencies and Exhibitions. 18th Street Arts Center is the largest, continuously running artist residency program in Southern California. The Center encourages contemporary artists from around the globe to create new work within a
supportive environment. We provide artists the space and time to take risks in ways that further the development of contemporary art practices. Our mission is to provoke public dialogue through contemporary art making. With a 30 year history, 18th Street Art Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, has supported thousands of individual
artists through its programs.

Job Description:
The Director of Residencies and Exhibitions is a leadership role that reports to the Executive Director and is responsible shaping the artistic programming of our exhibitions and artist residencies. They oversee programs that support local artists-in-residence at various career stages. The ideal candidate has institutional experience working directly with artists in the development of their work, and supporting artists during a live-in residency. They have honed expertise in planning and mounting formal art exhibitions in a variety of contexts. This position collaborates closely with the Director of Communications and Outreach to plan public programs and PR around exhibitions and residencies. They understand both the nonprofit and for profit art world. The position entails multi-year advance planning, budgeting, and supervising of artist residencies from multiple countries. Specific tasks include reviewing artist applicants, overseeing calls for proposals, curating 4 -5 primary exhibitions, and supervising 12-18 small guest-curated exhibitions. The individual is responsible for developing and managing annual program budgets and individual project budgets. They are closely involved in the planning and implementation of fund development for multi-year programming. They supervise an Assistant Curator, interns and volunteers. They work as part of a team of 8 staff members who together support the annual cohort of residencies, exhibitions, and related public events.

Job Requirements:

– Thorough understanding of the international contemporary art field.
– Masters degree in a relevant arts field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
– Five or more years of progressively responsible management level experience in the development of artist residency programs and/or curatorial projects in contemporary art.
– Superior communication, writing and interpersonal skills
– Excellent organization and time management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
– Self-motivated and ability to work within a team
– Experienced at multi-program budget management
– Successful grant writing and donor relationship experience
– Some travel required, available weekends and evenings
– Full-time Exempt, Salary commensurate with experience
– Open until filled

TO APPLY: Apply here and submit the following materials:

1. A cover letter highlighting 2 – 3 accomplishments relevant to the position
2. A current resume with relevant work experience
3. Three excerpts of published arts-related writing samples in PDF format
4. Three professional references