Director of Curatorial Affairs

The Opportunity

The Director of Curatorial Affairs will join Gilcrease Museum at an exciting time of expansion, reimagination, and positive energy. Following a successful capital campaign which supported the construction of the new $140-million, 84,000-square-foot facility, the Museum is on an unprecedented trajectory to engage its audiences, find relevance in the Greater Tulsa region, and build sustainability to benefit coming generations. The DCA, acting as a key strategic partner to the Museum’s new Executive Director, Brian Lee Whisenhunt, will focus on several initiatives that contribute to the organization’s future:

• Oversee curatorial logistics of opening the new Museum by fall 2026, consisting of 15 permanent and temporary exhibition galleries with thousands of objects.
• Strategize and implement expansion of the curatorial department, hiring an anticipated three new curators by 2026 and mapping the ongoing reinterpretation of the Museum’s collection.
• Contribute to a Museum-wide strategy for deeper engagement with Tribal Nations, Tulsa’s Black community, and with University of Tulsa faculty and students.
• Contribute to AAM reaccreditation process in 2025, evaluating and creating curatorial policies and procedures including a collections catalogue and acquisition plan.

Responsibilities and Expectations

Senior Team Leadership

• Participates in setting the Museum’s long-term goals and ensures they are carried out for the curatorial department.
• Builds audiences, extends community outreach, and maintains relationships locally, regionally, and nationally to further the Museum’s reputation.
• Oversees participation of the curatorial department in cross-institutional collaborative teams and strategic initiatives.
• Serves as an active participant in long-term financial planning; oversees the annual budgeting process of the curatorial department and ensures budget guidelines are followed.
• Serves as an advocate for the curatorial department within the Museum and acts as the Museum’s primary curatorial spokesperson with the media and public.

Curatorial Team Leadership and Management

• Coordinates curatorial logistics of installing permanent and temporary exhibits in Museum galleries, supporting the curatorial team as the new facility opens in fall 2026.
• Nurtures a curatorial team that interacts with trust, respect, and teamwork in an environment that values collegiality, support, and empathy.
• Provides strategic planning and oversight for Museum’s exhibition program, including multi-year schedule, budget, and development of changing exhibitions of various scales as well as promoting and negotiating outgoing traveling exhibitions to other museum venues.
• Hires, trains, supervises, and mentors direct reports.
• Supervises the curatorial team in ongoing efforts to reinterpret the collections to create a more holistic, story-based, and inclusive presentation of the Museum’s holdings.
• Oversees the Museum’s acquisition program and budgets; works with curators across all stewardship areas to continue development of the collection.
• Supports and amplifies the Museum’s commitment to justice, equity, diversity, access, inclusion, and sovereignty. Hosts regular listening sessions and develops meaningful collaborations with Tribal Nations and Tulsa-area community groups to maximize impact on the Museum’s exhibitions and collections.
• With the Executive Director, department heads, and curatorial team, formulates the Museum’s acquisitions strategy, and establishes conservation and collection-development priorities.
• Works closely with the development department to cultivate philanthropic giving and to develop strategy; participates in institutional giving activities including grants and sponsorships in support of programs.
• Serves as project director for grants secured for the curatorial department.

Experience, Skills, and Attributes

• Minimum seven years of experience in a senior curatorial role, preferably in American art.
• Experience in cultivating community partnerships to build inclusive interpretative practices.
• Sound financial planning and management abilities including successful administration of a department budget.
• Demonstrated leadership, supervisory, project management, and mentoring skills.
• Demonstrated ability to think strategically. Experience in developing long-term strategy and goals in collaboration with cross-departmental teams.
• Interpersonal skills; works effectively with people at all levels, including board members, collectors, donors, and other external stakeholders.
• Strong written and oral communication skills; experience with public presentations and media relations.
• Technical literacy in curatorial research, productivity tools, and digital interpretation.
• Experience with academic and/or curatorial research, writing for diverse audiences, and editing academic publications.
• Academic degree in art history or relevant field.

Research shows that women and individuals from under-represented backgrounds often apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. We recognize that it is highly unlikely that an applicant meets 100% of the qualifications for a given role. Therefore, if much of this job description describes you, then you are highly encouraged to apply for this role.