Internship Annoucement
Volunteer internships at Phoenix Art Museum provide current undergraduate and graduate students, as well as recent graduates, with opportunities to work on projects directed by Museum staff. They introduce interns to the broad spectrum of museum work and to Museum staff, departments, programs and operations. Summer internships last for eight weeks and total 160 work hours. Fall/spring semester and special-projects internships total at least 120 work hours.
Unless otherwise noted in individual internship descriptions, most internships at Phoenix Art Museum are performed on a volunteer basis. Museum staff members aid in the intern’s pursuit of academic credit, if applicable. All interns receive a one-year student membership at Phoenix Art Museum.
Fall 2008
Application form and all supporting documents must be received no later than July 1
CURATORIAL/FASHION DESIGN
Education: Current undergraduate, recent graduate or current graduate student
Major/area(s) of study: Fashion design/merchandizing/history, textile conservation or related field
Primary purpose: To aid the curator of fashion design with upcoming exhibitions and maintenance of the collection.
Essential functions:
1. Help manage the backlog of garments to be photographed and stored in vault.
2. Maintain department records, such as contact lists, press, research, collection committee forms.
3. Assist with research for upcoming projects, such as lectures and exhibitions.
4. Aid with upkeep of fashion design storage vault.
5. Work as part of team to install rotating fashion design exhibitions. Installation may include: building mounts and wigs, dressing mannequins and/or creating gallery labels.
6. Other departmental duties as needed.
Special skills/physical requirements: Intern must be able to lift garment boxes weighing 20-30 lbs. Computer skills should include MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Picture Manager) and rudimentary knowledge of Adobe Photoshop. Must have excellent public relations skills. Good writing skills are necessary to describe designers and garments concisely and intelligently.
Other comments: Other special events for the fashion design collection – such as luncheons, lectures, gallery talks, exhibition openings – require intern assistance (i.e., occasional evening and/or weekend hours). A background release is required for this internship.
DEVELOPMENT/CORPORATE RELATIONS
Education: Current undergraduate or recent graduate
Major/area(s) of study: Art history, non-profit management, business, or related field
Primary purpose: To assist the Corporate Relations Department with the creation of exhibition sales prospectuses, long-term departmental planning and prospect donor research.
Essential functions:
1. Create new corporate sales prospectuses relating to the Museum’s advanced exhibition schedule.
2. Research potential corporate leads and follow up with written and/or telephone correspondence.
3. Other departmental duties as needed.
Special skills/physical requirements: Good communication and writing skills, attention to detail, ability to work with MS Office applications (e.g. Word, Excel and Adobe Photoshop).
Other comments: Graduate students are also welcome to apply.
EDUCATION
Education: Current undergraduate, recent graduate or current graduate student
Major/area(s) of study: Art history, art education, museum studies or related field
Primary purpose: To evaluate the Museum’s current audioguide for content useability and make recommendations for future production.
Essential functions:
1. Evaluate current content of Museum’s current audioguide.
2. Work with Education and Curatorial Departments to update material for new audioguide.
3. Other duties as needed.
Special skills/physical requirements: Strong background in art history and/or art education; attention to detail; excellent writing skills; and ability to work individually and as part of a team are musts.
GRAPHIC DESIGN
Education: Current undergraduate, recent graduate or current graduate student
Major/area(s) of study: Graphic design or related field
Primary purpose: To conceptualize and develop marketing materials for the Museum in conjunction with in-house design team.
Essential functions:
Special skills/physical requirements: Intern should be articulate, well presented and proficient in the following applications: Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator (CS version 1 or above), Quark Xpress (version 5 or above) and MS Office (version 2003 or above) applications.
Other comments: Candidates selected for an interview will be requested to present a portfolio covering a variety of media from print through Web.
LIBRARY
Education: Current graduate student or post-graduate
Major/area(s) of study: Library science or related field
Primary purpose: To assist in the day-to-day operation of the Lemon Art Research Library.
Essential functions:
1. Review catalogue entries for a Library-wide re-cataloguing project.
2. Update internal cataloguing system with call-number information.
3. Other duties as needed.
Special skills/physical requirements: Intern should be able to lift up to 10 lbs unassisted. Intern must be able to learn Museum-specific cataloguing software. Coursework in library science a must.
Other comments: Undergraduate students with library experience or related coursework may also apply.
MARKETING
Education: Current undergraduate, recent graduate or current graduate student
Major/area(s) of study: Marketing or related field
Primary purpose: To support the Museum’s marketing and public relations team with tactics to increase Museum awareness to the Metro Phoenix population, both inside and outside the Museum.
Essential functions:
1. Organize press clippings.
2. Meet with potential Museum partners to distribute marketing materials.
3. Organize/collect imagery for use in Museum advertising campaigns.
4. Get involved in creative brainstorming sessions to discuss the promotion of upcoming exhibitions.
5. Clerical/administrative/other duties as required.
Special skills/physical requirements: Intern should be articulate, well presented and proficient in major Microsoft applications.
Other comments: Preference is given to upper-level undergraduates, graduating seniors and graduate students.
MEMBERSHIP
Education: Current undergraduate or recent graduate
Major/area(s) of study: All majors
Primary purpose: To assist the membership department with plans to acquire new members, and cultivate/provide stewardship to existing 17,000 Membership households.
Essential functions: Depending on intern’s interest, projects may include:
1. Create plans for a variety of Museum Members-only events
2. Create and implement a variety of targeted email surveys to gather information in regards to Members experience with a various exhibitions, customer service and expectations for the future
3. Create and implement small acquisition mail campaigns, steps include utilizing membership database and creating letter and incentive package
4. Create comparison of member benefit structures with other museums (locally and nationally)
REGISTRATION
Education: Current undergraduate or recent graduate
Major/area(s) of study: Art history, museum studies or related field
Primary purpose: To assist the Museum’s registrar’s office with an ongoing, longterm project involving accession records (i.e. loan agreements, deeds of gift and object information).
Essential functions: This primary purpose will be supplemented by:
1. Unpacking/packing of objects
2. Exhibition installation/deinstallation
3. Legal forms (deeds of gift, incoming/outgoing receipts, incoming/outgoing loan agreements, non-exclusive license agreements, certificates of insurance)
4. Collection research
5. Data entry into collections-management database
6. Condition reports
7. Inquiries about the collection
8. Other departmental projects as needed.
Special skills/physical requirements: Interns will interact with a wide variety of people including staff members, lenders/donors, other institutions and the public. Due to the confidental nature of the information stored in the registrar’s office, discretion is essential. A background release is required for this internship.
Other comments: Internships in the registrar’s office literally provide “hands-on” experience. The registrars are committed to working with students who have a sincere interest in museum registration/collections management.
FACILITIES
Education: Current undergraduate or recent graduate
Major/area(s) of study: Any facilities or building operation/management related major
Primary purpose: To learn and be responsible, under the guidance of the Museum's facilities management team, for a certain segment of the department (may include computer management systems, preventative maintenance programs, event planning and execution, new construction, custodial care, green initiatives and LEED technology, etc.).
Essential functions: Depending on the time of year, available projects and work hours vary. The internship is tailored to the individual prior to offer or acceptance.
Other comments: A facilities intern gains experience in bridging the gap between institutional learning and actual real-world facilities management. They observe the interplay of a diverse group of people and departments and how they impact the operations of a maintenance department. Interns learn how bond money is obtained, utilized and reallocated.
How to Apply
1. Carefully review individual internship descriptions to make sure that you meet all criteria before applying.
2. Download the full internship program guidelines and application.
3. Application deadlines: Completed application materials must be received by March 1 for summer, July 1 for fall semester or November 1 for spring semester. Please send application materials to:
Phoenix Art Museum
ATTN: Internships
1625 North Central Avenue
Phoenix, Arizona 85004-1685
Incomplete or late applications will not be accepted for consideration. Applications will not be accepted by e-mail or fax.
Questions? E-mail the Museum’s Education Department