"Curator / Senior Curator, South & South-East Asian Collections"

NUS Museum is a university museum within the National University of Singapore that supports object-based learning, interdisciplinary research, and curatorial inquiry. Its collections span Asian art, Southeast Asian material culture, and modern and contemporary practices, serving as a resource for teaching, scholarship, and public engagement across the University and the region.

Working within the curatorial team and guided by the Museum’s academic mission, the Curator / Senior Curator is responsible for the stewardship, research, and development of the Museum’s South and Southeast Asian collections. The role contributes to the growth, documentation, and interpretation of the collections through acquisitions, systematic cataloguing, and scholarly research, while expanding access through exhibitions, publications, and public programmes.

The position also supervises curatorial staff and collaborates with other museum units to advance the Museum’s curatorial, research, and educational initiatives. At the Senior Curator level, the role includes leadership in shaping long-term research directions for the collection, leading major curatorial projects, and developing institutional and international partnerships.

Duties & Responsibilities

At the Senior Curator level, the position is expected to provide intellectual and professional leadership in shaping research directions for the South and Southeast Asian collections, leading major curatorial projects and publications, mentoring junior curatorial staff, and strengthening institutional partnerships and collaborations within the region and internationally.

Curatorial Leadership

• Supervise curatorial staff responsible for collection development, archives, and the University’s public art collection.
• Provide guidance on research priorities, cataloguing standards, and project delivery.

Collections Development

• Serve as curator-in-charge of the South and Southeast Asian collections.
• Participate in acquisition and valuation processes and oversee accession procedures.
• Ensure systematic cataloguing and documentation of the collection according to professional museum standards.

Research and Scholarship

• Conduct research on the collections and develop archival and research materials.
• Contribute to strengthening the collections as resources for interdisciplinary teaching and scholarship.

Exhibitions and Curatorial Projects

• Conceptualise and develop exhibitions and curatorial projects based on the collections or assigned themes.
• Work collaboratively with museum units including collections management, programmes, administration, and marketing.

Publications

• Write and edit exhibition catalogues, scholarly essays, and digital content related to the collections and exhibitions.

Public and Academic Engagement

• Develop and contribute to public programmes such as talks, workshops, and seminars in collaboration with the Museum’s outreach team.
• Engage faculty, students, and wider audiences through tours, lectures, and educational activities.

Professional Networks

• Establish and maintain professional relationships with academics, curators, and cultural institutions locally and internationally.
• Represent the Museum in relevant professional forums and collaborations.

Institutional Service

• Contribute to committees and other institutional initiatives as assigned by the University Curator.

Requirements

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Art History, History, Cultural Studies, Museum Studies, Arts Management, or a related discipline; and with relevant work history.

Experience

• Relevant experience in curatorial practice, museum collections, research, or archival work.
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