Assistant Conservator

About the Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world for everyone to experience and enjoy. The Museum lives in two iconic sites in New York City—The Met Fifth Avenue and The Met Cloisters. Millions of people also take part in The Met experience online.

Since its founding in 1870, The Met has always aspired to be more than a treasury of rare and beautiful objects. We are committed to fostering a collaborative and respectful work environment with a staff as diverse as the audiences we engage. Our staff members are art lovers who are passionate about working toward a common goal: creating the most dynamic and inspiring art museum in the world.

At The Met, every staff member – from security officers to researchers to scientists and beyond – lives by our core values of respect, inclusivity, collaboration, excellence, and integrity. 

Respect: Engage one another with collegiality, empathy, and kindness, always.

Inclusivity: Ensure that all are and feel welcome and valued.

Collaboration: Reach across boundaries to exchange ideas and work together toward our shared mission.

Excellence: Lead the cultural world in quality and expertise—and inspire curiosity and creativity.

Integrity: Hold ourselves to the highest moral standards, admit when we fall short, and then evolve. 

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT:

The Department of Textile Conservation is responsible for preservation, conservation, technical study, research, and installation of the Museum’s collection of approximately 36,000 textiles in twelve curatorial departments, stored primarily in the Antonio Ratti Textile Study and Storage Center. The expansive collection represents a broad range of textiles, including flat textiles, tapestries, carpets, embroideries, costumes, archaeological and three-dimensional fiber art as well as accessories from all periods and cultures.   The Department sets and follows guidelines for documentation, care, handling, display, and storage of the textiles and plays a vital role in The Met’s Integrated Pest Management (IPM). The Department of Textile Conservation at The Metropolitan Museum of Art upholds the highest professional standards in the conservation of the Museum’s collection of textiles.

GENERAL STATEMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES:

You play a vital role in the well-functioning of the department, supporting conservators responsible for textile collections in various curatorial departments.  You will be actively involved in different aspects of conservation work, varying from documentation through conservation treatment to analytical work through the interactions with colleagues working with diverse materials and projects, including a full range of historic and contemporary textiles and costumes. You will have the opportunity to expand your knowledge and skills by learning traditional tapestries and carpet weaving/re-weaving techniques, as well as contribute to the development of treatment and display methodology of modern and contemporary textiles, ranging from flat textiles to three-dimensional fiber art along with mixed-media textile art.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES:

• Perform condition checks, examination and documentation of textiles using photographic and computer-aided technology within the safe and proper handling of textiles.

• In-depth analysis of materials and weaving techniques including  fiber and weave structure analysis using microscope equipment

• Assist liaison conservators with conservation treatment through discussion, research, analysis and implementation of appropriate methodology based on assigned projects

• Assist with time-sensitive projects and duties as assigned by Conservator-in -Charge

• Participate with installation/de-installation of exhibitions/gallery rotations ranging from assisting liaison conservator(s) or requiring teamwork (e.g., large tapestries and carpet installations/de-installations at various physical heights)

• Assist with preparation and installation of textiles for loans and acquisitions and possible courier travel to accompany and safeguard the art both domestically and internationally

• Contribute to the continual development of preventive conservation techniques leading to the long-term preservation, treatment and storage of organic and particularly synthetic and mix-media materials

• Contribute to the department’s research and publishing on conservation treatments, methodologies, materials and techniques, etc.

• Conduct IPM activities individually and as part of team such as vacuuming, anoxic treatment, freezer treatm