Assistant Preparator - Cranbrook Art Museum

About the Museum

Cranbrook Art Museum is a leading venue for the presentation of twentieth- and twenty-first-century art, craft, architecture, and design. Located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a suburb of metropolitan Detroit, the museum sits on the 319-acre historic landmark campus of the Cranbrook Educational Community. Its sister institution is Cranbrook Academy of Art, a renowned graduate school of art, architecture, craft, and design.

The museum’s collections span the 20th and 21st centuries, with a focus on the achievements of faculty and students of the Academy of Art and artists in the Detroit metropolitan area. The museum frequently presents public art programs in Detroit, collaborating with diverse artists, curators, and community partners. Each year, it also showcases artworks created by the graduating class of Cranbrook Academy of Art.

In 2011, the museum completed a renovation of its original 1942 building, designed by Eliel Saarinen, and added a new Collections Wing—a state-of-the-art facility for handling and storing nearly 7,500 works of art, with curated public viewing access.

About the Role

Cranbrook Art Museum is seeking an Assistant Preparator to support the team responsible for gallery preparation, exhibition installation, and deinstallation. This is a part-time position, working approximately 10 weeks per year between May and October, primarily during installation periods. The role requires flexible hours.

Responsibilities

• Prepares galleries for exhibition, including wall and pedestal construction and painting.
• Prepares objects for exhibition, including installing, deinstalling, matting, framing, mounting, and lighting.
• Assists with the movement, transportation, packing, and installation of objects in the museum.
• Maintains attendance, punctuality, and performance standards as outlined in Cranbrook’s employee handbook.

Requirements

• Excellent technical, construction, and woodworking skills.
• Knowledgeable in art handling techniques and best practices for the care, preservation, and exhibition of various objects, including bronze, ceramic and wooden sculptures, paintings, works on paper, and textiles.
• Interest in contemporary art.
• Excellent communication skills; will regularly collaborate with the Preparator, Registrar, other museum staff, and work-study students.