Curatorial Assistant
- Program stream:
- Young Canada Works in Heritage Organizations
- Job title:
- Curatorial Assistant
- Organization name:
- Guelph Museums
- Job location:
- Guelph, Ontario
- Length of assignment:
- 2018-05-14 to 2018-08-06 (12 weeks)
- Hourly wage:
- $17.39
Start of Job: May 14, 2018
End of Job: August 31, 2018
Salary: $17.39 (starting) per hour
Job Description:
Guelph Museums consists of three heritage sites: (1) Guelph Civic Museum; (2) McCrae House; and (3) Locomotive 6167. Our overall collections management work plan includes the complete cataloguing of the archives (paper documents and photographic materials), artifacts, and objects of fine art, which together document and annotate each of these sites.
The Guelph Civic Museum showcases Guelph’s history through permanent and changing exhibitions, interactive families and city galleries, as well as special events and engagement activities. Located in the recently renovated Loretto Convent (established in 1856) atop “Catholic Hill” and near to the Church of Our Lady Immaculate (built between 1875 and 1883, designated as a basilica in 2014), the museum is home to a collection of over 40,000 artifacts (including 15,000 photographs) that bring Guelph’s past to life.
McCrae House is a National Historic Site and the birthplace of Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae (1872-1918), the First World War doctor, soldier and poet who penned “In Flanders Fields.” Written in 1915 on the battlefields of Ypres, Belgium, “In Flanders Fields” is perhaps the most celebrated poem of WWI, establishing the poppy as a lasting symbol for soldiers who have lost their lives in conflict, included McCrae himself. McCrae House was designated in 1966 for its architectural and historic significance.
Locomotive 6167 (built in 1940) was one of 203 “Northern” locomotives used by Canadian National Railways (CN) for passenger and freight service. During the Second World War, 6167 hauled troops and supplies to Canada's eastern ports. Between 1960 and 1964, CN repurposed the locomotive for special excursion trips throughout Ontario -- it became known as Canada’s “most photographed locomotive.” CN presented 6167 to the City of Guelph in 1967 in honour of Canada’s centennial and, in 2014, it became part of the Guelph Museums collection.
The incumbent in the Curatorial Assistant role will contribute significantly toward the achievement of our collections management objectives. They will engage the myriad historical narratives held within our sites by working with the Civic, McCrae, and 6167 collections. The incumbent will gain specific experience in accessioning, cataloguing, data entry, research, and digitization through the following projects: (1) Archives Inventory (indexing and researching historical Guelph businesses); (2) Digitization, transcription and analysis of the Oxnard journals (1856-1920), a 64-year firsthand account of life in early Guelph; (3) Re-Photography and Re-Accessioning of Artifacts (furniture storage); and (4) Uploading of newly digitized images representing a slide collection of 1,500 pieces acquired by the Museum in 2013. Through this work, the incumbent will acquire valuable work experience in a specific museum environment, skills that are broadly transferable across Canada's museum sector, including but not limited to: collection management, digitization and photographic standards, multi-tasking and time management, and analysis and research.
Qualifications:
The ideal candidate for this position will be engaged in one of the following post-secondary programs of study: History, Art History, Studio Art, or Other Humanities/Social Sciences (3rd or 4th year undergraduate-level) / Collections Conservation and Management (1st year college-level) or Applied Museum Studies (1st or 2nd year college-level). They will come to the position with strong organizational skills, good computer skills, and some experience in research. Data entry skills and experience with PastPerfect, scanner, and digital imaging software are considered assets. The incumbent will have excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Duties will include:
(1) Archives Inventory (indexing and researching historical Guelph businesses): Use of flatbed scanner to record an image of each page of Section Two (totally 20 broadsheets) of The Guelph Mercury Progress Edition, a newspaper artifact published on March 1, 1966; digital post-production using Photoshop; storage of each file in three sizes/formats (600dpi TIF, 300dpi JPG, and 100dpi JPG); and index/research content of the newspaper artifact to enrich our database records with further historical information.
(2) Digitization, transcription and analysis of the Oxnard journals (1856-1920), a 64-year firsthand account of life in early Guelph: Use of flatbed scanner or digital camera to record an image of each page of Oxnard journal no. 8 (1867); digital post-production using Photoshop; storage of each file in three sizes/formats (600dpi TIF, 300dpi JPG, and 100dpi JPG); and transcription and analysis of journal contents to enrich our database records with further historical information.
(3) Re-Photography and Re-Accessioning of Artifacts (furniture storage): Use of digital camera and large-object photo-documentation studio to capture multiple images of each dimensional object (photographed in the round); digital post-production using Photoshop; storage of each file in three sizes/formats (600dpi TIF, 300dpi JPG, and 100dpi JPG); and re-assigning new and unique accession numbers to furniture objects with duplicate numbers (approx. 30-50), correctly labeling each object, and ensuring corrected accession numbers are mapped into in the database.
(4) Uploading of newly digitized images representing a slide collection of 1,500 images acquired by the Museum in 2013: Methodically replacing old digital image files (poor condition) with new digital image files, utilizing the PastPerfect collections management database.
This position will provide the incumbent with gainful employment and transferable skills for future opportunity in the museum sector. The City of Guelph and Guelph Museums are equal opportunity employers.
Interested candidates must be registered with the Young Canada Works candidate inventory. (Please see https://young-canada-works.canada.ca/Account/Login for eligibility criteria.)
Please send resumes by April 25, 2018 to: careers@guelph.ca
Subject: P-01 Curatorial Assistant / Attn: Dawn Owen, Curator, Guelph Museums
(Only those chosen for an interview will be contacted.)
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