Current Opportunities

The Rubin Museum is seeking a strategic, innovative, and engaging Executive Director who is committed to its bold mission as an innovative institution that engages the public broadly. Over the next few years, the Museum needs a leader who will expand audience and engagement locally and virtually, refine the collection, and build philanthropic support.

The Rubin Museum of Art opened in October 2004 to widespread acclaim, supported by a staff of 80 and annual budget of $12 million. The Founders contributed over 1,800 works of art and donated additional substantial funds to strengthen and diversify the collection.

It is challenging for any new institution in New York City to build its reputation and audience, and particularly so for a museum whose art is unfamiliar to most. To accomplish its goal, the Trustees elected to “burn bright” by spending liberally. Their efforts were rewarded: attendance doubled during its first decade with more than 190,000 visitors in 2016 and collectors and scholars came to perceive the Museum's programs and publications as best-in-class.

By the end of its first decade, the Museum was a worldwide leader in Himalayan art exhibitions and scholarship and a beloved gem in the New York City art scene. At that point, the Founders and Trustees decided to transition spending to focus on long term financial sustainability and ramped up its fundraising efforts by expanding its development team. In 2014, the Founders created a Sustaining Fund with their final gift to the Museum.

The Museum completed its first decade with nearly $130 million in Sustaining and Operating Funds, and a 24-member Board of Trustees focused on balancing financial sustainability with the Museum's characteristic excellence and creativity.

For more information on the Rubin Museum of Art, visit http://rubinmuseum.org/.

The Executive Director is responsible for providing leadership and direction in fulfilling the Trustees' intention to expand impact and audience by focusing in on the new programmatic vision. The Executive Director will be the face of the Museum locally, nationally, and internationally and will serve as a bridge between internal and external stakeholders. Importantly, the Executive Director will represent the Rubin to a wide range of individuals and institutions, build partnerships with other entities, and cement the Rubin's place as a leader in the arts and cultural community.

Reporting to the Board of Trustees, the Executive Director's primary responsibilities include devising strategy, overseeing implementation, internal and external communications, audience development, fundraising, and operations and administration. The Executive Director will work to ensure the Rubin is fiscally sound and to attract and retain top talent.

Specific responsibilities include:

• Driving the continued articulation and implementation of the Rubin's new programmatic vision with a focus on further expanding both impact and audience;
• Representing the Rubin in cultural circles to raise the profile of the institution;
• Continuing to build the Museum's niche in the scholarship of the Himalayas;
• Playing a leadership role in fundraising and working with the Board and staff to bring in previously untapped support; and
• Overseeing the operations of the Rubin, including finances, facilities, and staff management.

Koya Leadership Partners, a national retained executive search firm that works with nonprofit clients, has been exclusively retained for this search. To express your interest in this role please email Alison Ranney and Alexandra Corvin directly at RubinMuseum@koyapartners.com. All inquiries and discussions will be considered strictly confidential.

The Rubin Museum of Art is an equal-opportunity employer and seeks diversity in its staff.

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