Curator - NYUAD Art Gallery

Position Summary

New York University Abu Dhabi is hiring a Curator for its Art Gallery, with appointment at the Assistant, Associate, or full Curator level based on the candidate’s background and experience. The role reports to the Galleries Executive Director and Chief Curator, and sits within a non-collecting academic museum that operates on a kunsthalle model. The gallery’s exhibition program is centered on curatorial research, artistic experimentation, and knowledge production, linking the university’s teaching and research mission with audiences in the UAE, the wider region, and the global art world.

The selected Curator will help shape exhibitions, public programs, campus art initiatives, and mentorship activities, while working within professional museum standards recognized by AAM, ICOM, and related organizations.

Applications are open to all suitably qualified candidates. In accordance with UAE regulations, Emirati candidates are especially encouraged to apply. Applicants are expected to submit a cover letter explaining their relevant strengths, motivation, and long-term goals.

Key Areas of Work

The Curator will lead and support work across exhibition development, public engagement, campus-based art projects, and training for students and emerging professionals. The gallery’s programming spans multiple regions, periods, and artistic traditions, so the role requires strong curatorial judgment and flexibility when working across ancient and contemporary contexts.

Responsibilities

• Develop and oversee major exhibitions on a recurring basis, including research, production, interpretation, and publication.
• Carry out independent research, conduct studio visits, and build long-term relationships for future projects.
• Publish writing and present research publicly in connection with curatorial areas of expertise.
• Collaborate with faculty members and guest curators on exhibitions drawn from their specialist knowledge.
• Help guide acquisition thinking with the Chief Curator and oversee upcoming site-specific commissions.
• Serve on the Campus Art Committee and contribute to institutional policies and procedures for caring for the campus collection according to accepted museum standards and best practices.
• Research and produce curatorial texts for the university’s campus-wide collection.
• Supervise the Curatorial Fellow and lead exhibitions outside the main gallery space.
• Oversee exhibition rotation and community-gallery activity in the Project Space.
• Draft or edit exhibition texts as needed, or supervise the Curatorial Fellow in doing so.
• Act as a primary contact for the Project Space alongside the Curatorial Fellow.
• Advise on and help deliver the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award, an annual public art project for emerging UAE-based artists.
• Support additional campus projects as required.
• Create exhibition-linked programs with the engagement and education teams, including talks, symposia, residencies, tours, workshops, and other audience-focused activities.
• Build engagement with students, faculty, schools, community groups, and regional publics through events and outreach.
• Teach gallery-related classes, give public lectures, and mentor interns, fellows, volunteers, and student docents.
• Work with faculty to identify ways the gallery’s exhibitions and projects can connect with academic syllabi.
• Help shape curatorial strategy and the long-term vision of the exhibitions program with the Chief Curator.
• Contribute to press, media, and social communication efforts, including press-facing content and promotional support.
• Support fundraising and stakeholder engagement, including work with the Advisory Circle.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in Art History or a closely related discipline.
• More than 5 years of relevant curatorial experience.
• Experience curating exhibitions in an institutional, non-commercial setting.
• Strong understanding of art, art history, and collections in an international context.
• Excellent research, writing, speaking, and presentation skills.
• Proven ability to manage several priorities at once in an organized and detail-oriented way.
• Comfort working with a range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Familiarity with museum best practices.
• Ability to think strategically about growing a university gallery/kunsthalle in the UAE and wider region.
• Preferred: doctoral degree.
• Preferred: more than 5 years of museum exhibition curation experience.
• Preferred: experience commissioning artists.
• Preferred: experience writing exhibition catalogue texts.
• Preferred: experience editing publications.
• Preferred: professional fluency in another language, especially Arabic or a non-European language, in both written and spoken form.
• Preferred: experience leading teams with varied backgrounds and cultural perspectives.

Additional Information

The university is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to equity, diversity, and social inclusion.