Curator in Charge, European Sculpture & Decorative Arts

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. 

The Curator in Charge is the intellectual and administrative leader of the Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (ESDA).  The Department is among the largest in the Museum, with over 60,000 objects in its collection and over fifty galleries centered on the first floor.  Its centrality within the building is augmented by its proximity and relationship to departments with which it is in active dialogue, including Medieval Art, the American Wing, the Michael C Rockfeller Wing (African Art, Oceanic Art, and Ancient American Art), European Paintings and Asian Art.  Through new scholarship, ambitious acquisitions, inventive display, and active programming, the collection is presented within the context of global creativity.  The next years will see the opening of significant permanent galleries and a series of important exhibitions organized by the ESDA staff.

You will provide an overarching vision for the department, establishing strong, ambitious leadership, fostering a culture of scholarly innovation, international connection, and overall excitement about work at The Met. You will support and advocate for the department’s staff throughout the institution, while fostering collegiality and collaboration within the team.  You will set priorities, solve problems and establish workflows, focusing on the care of the collections. You will actively encourage groundbreaking and timely areas of research and programming. You will also be the department’s ambassador, clearly articulating its role for museum supporters and the public.

Application Deadline: June 26, 2026

• Lead and motivate a team of curators, researchers, collections staff, technicians and administrators caring for a collection spanning Europe over many centuries in both sculpture and the decorative arts

• Direct and manage departmental special exhibitions, installations, research, publications, public programming and acquisitions

• Manage the ongoing care of the galleries and ESDA’s storage areas

• Oversee an acquisition program that adds exceptional objects to the collection, working with collectors and donors

• Continue the department’s role as a center for scholarship both internally and in the broader academic world

• Carry out research in your own area of expertise

• Develop programs for ESDA Friends groups and the Visiting Committee

• Other duties as assigned

• Ph.D. in Art History with a concentration in relevant field preferred

• Minimum ten years’ experience directly related to the duties and responsibilities required

• Successful conceptualization and curation of major international exhibition required

• Recognized achievement for expertise and scholarship in the field stretching across various regions and cultures of the collection

• Good working knowledge of European and other relevant languages required

• Strong record of publications in the field required

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills required

• Ability to manage staff and to work collaboratively and efficiently within the department and cross-departmentally

• Pay Range: $220,000.00 - $260,000.00 / Annually

The advertised pay scale reflects the good faith minimum and maximum salary range for this role. The advertised pay scale is not a promise of a particular wage for any specific employee. The specific compensation offered to a candidate may be dependent on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, the candidate’s experience, education, special licensing or qualifications, and other factors.

Location Requirements

At time of employment, employees are expected to be located within commuting distance of the Museum. “Commuting distance” means that they are located in one of following states: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, or Pennsylvania (the “Tri-state and PA” areas), and be able to commute to and from the Museum in a single day.

Benefits Offerings

The Museum provides competitive compensation, and generous benefits and perks for all eligible employees. Note: Benefits Offering may differ based on Employee Status.

• Medical, dental, vision and life insurance
• 403(b) basic retirement plan and optional matching retirement plan with an outstanding employer match
• Considerable paid time off, including annual leave, sick leave, and 13 Museum holidays
• Long-term disability coverage
• Flexible Spending Accounts & Health Savings Account (pre-tax income for eligible health care expenses)
• Commuter benefits (pre-tax income for parking or mass transit expenses)
• Free financial-planning services
• Financial assistance for relevant coursework, seminars, and training programs
• 25% discount for staff in Museum shops
• A subsidized staff cafeteria
• Access to the Museums Council pass, which grants free admission to various museums and cultural institutions

We recognize that it is highly unlikely that someone meets 100% of the desired attributes for a role. If much of this job description describes you, then please apply for this role.

The Met is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, The Met will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed in this process, please contact [email protected].  

The Metropolitan Museum of Art provides equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, age, mental or physical disability, pregnancy, alienage or citizenship status, marital status or domestic partner status, genetic information, genetic predisposition or carrier status, gender identity, HIV status, military status and any other category protected by law in all employment decisions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, compensation, training and apprenticeship, promotion, upgrading, demotion, downgrading, transfer, lay-off and termination, and all other terms and conditions of employment.