Search for New Director at Kunstinstituut Melly

Can you conceptualize and deliver an artistic program that has local and global significance? Do you champion thoughtful, diverse and experimental artists, their practices and curatorial work? Would you like to realize a program that challenges established ideas about art or test perceived boundaries within the art field? Do you have, or would like to have, experience in leading an arts institution? If your answers to these questions are yes, consider applying to Kunstinstituut Melly as its new Director.

Those who embrace Kunstinstituut Melly’s mission and its recent transformations are encouraged to apply. Since the Director at this institution is responsible for both artistic vision and business matters, applicants to this position should be imaginative, resourceful and eloquent. We are looking for hiring a Director who is passionate about art and committed to experiencing and thinking about our times; who can inspire and work in a team; who balances the demands of life and work well.

The tenure of the new Director commences at the start of 2024. Application deadline is 16 April 2023. Further details can be found below.

INSTITUTION’S BACKGROUND

Critical reflection on timely issues characterizes the research that informs exhibitions, publications and programs at Kunstinstituut Melly. Our mission focuses on giving visibility to art and theory of our present.

Established in 1990 as Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art, and renamed in 2021 to Kunstinstituut Melly, this Dutch art institution is located in the port city of Rotterdam. Our institution is sited in a repurposed nineteenth-century school building that spans 3,750m2. As can be noted in our recent annual report, we have a substantial network of affiliated institutions and stakeholders. We receive public subsidies from the city of Rotterdam and the OCW - Ministry of Education and Culture in the Netherlands, funding for which it competes every four years. Additionally, our program is supported by public and private foundation grants and earned revenue from tickets/sales and fundraising activities.

As of late, ‘Melly’ is how the institution is most commonly called. Our renaming to Melly came with a significant institutional transformation with aims to be more culturally inclusive. Our activities have been a meaningful springboard for emerging and established artists, curators, educators and writers from across the globe. We have a strong trajectory of presenting research-based exhibitions, commissioning art and staging visual arts performances, as well as in making award-winning publications and organizing referential public programs. Melly is also renowned for staging major solo-exhibitions by internationally acclaimed artists, including Ken Lum in 1990, the late Hélio Oiticica in 1992, David Lamelas in 1997, Yto Barrada in 2004, AA Bronson in 2013, and Cecilia Vicuña in 2019.

Melly has been long considered a leading institution in the art field for its groundbreaking exhibitions, as much as its risk-taking initiatives. Our mandate to appoint a new Director every three to six years ensures that we renew our guiding vision and embrace different perspectives. Each Director at Melly has contributed to forging new formats of exhibition-making and even shaping the role of contemporary art centers. Over the course of their tenure, Directors are given the opportunity to make a personal mark. Our former Directors are: Chris Dercon, from 1990 to 1995; Bartomeu Marí, from 1996 to 2001; Catherine David, from 2002 to 2004, followed by Hans Maarten van den Brink as interim Director until 2006; Nicolaus Schafhausen, from 2006 to 2011; and, Defne Ayas from 2012 to 2017.

Since 2018, Melly’s Director is Sofía Hernández Chong Cuy; her tenure ends in December 2023. During her tenure, she has presented an acclaimed exhibitions program, including solo-exhibitions by Teresa Margolles in 2018, Iris Kensmil in 2021, Jennifer Tee in 2023, and Lucy Beech (forthcoming); plus, the latest in a series of group exhibitions is the slowly-evolving 84 STEPS, addressing mental health and involving more than ten art commissions. Sofía also spearheaded the institution’s Name Change Initiative and has championed public engagement. This includes transforming the ground-floor gallery into an admissions-free program space with a cantina and bookshop; releasing print and online publications; setting a collective learning methodology; and developing an ecosystem-oriented policy.

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Director of Kunstinstituut Melly (Melly) determines the artistic vision and organizational direction for the institution, which can be programmatically materialized and systematically set in motion for a period of at least three years.

The Director is overseen by a Supervisory Board, and works in close collaboration with the institution’s core team. At present, Melly has a core team of 20 employees (13 FTEs), plus a team of approximately 60 people who work as art mediators or as part of the installation crew, hospitality and security teams. The Director leads the team in materializing activities, as well as in deepening relationships in the local community and internationally. This includes working closely with collaborators and key partners to develop new approaches to cultural production, presentation, interpretation, and experience.

The Director is knowledgeable and keeps up to date with artistic and theoretical developments of our present. They are thus the driving force and team leader on all aspects of the program development, including exhibitions, publications, programs and communications; finance and operations; stakeholder management and fundraising activities. As the executive manager at our institution, the Director’s role includes working on matters pertaining staffing; budget planning and oversight; strategic planning and policy. The Director interfaces with stakeholders, governmental agencies and civil servants as necessary. They are also a leading figure in other development efforts ensuring the financial sustainability of Melly.

Critical to the success of a Director at Melly is the ability to creatively, productively and effectively connect with a wide range of artistic communities, to develop innovative and compelling programming, and to strengthen the identity of our institution as a distinct and relevant art space and cultural destination. Internally, the Director’s success is achieved in so far it motivates and develops a high-performing, diverse team, and continues to build a culture of inclusion, collaboration, and resilience. The Director is responsible to build upon, and likewise to evolve, the work and reputation of Melly in advancing the field of contemporary art, locally, nationally, and internationally.

Applications by individuals, duos, and collectives are welcomed.

Salary

95.000 Euros annually or salary commensurate to experience.

Including holiday allowance, pension and other benefits.

The 30% ruling may be applicable to non-Dutch citizens.

Contract

Three-year contract, with the possibility of a three-year extension.

This is a full-time position.

Additional

A one-time moving stipend to Rotterdam, if applicable

POSITION REQUIREMENTS

Applications to this position will be considered if the candidate demonstrates having:

An artistic vision and the ability to carry out and communicate this vision through a program offer that may include exhibitions, commissions, publications, and other kinds of activities.

Additionally, applicants to this position must have most of the following skills and requirements for the role of Director at Kunstinstituut Melly:

• Maintains good relationships with contemporary artists.

• Understands and seeks out current developments in the art field, especially pertaining to art and theory of the present.

• Is involved or is interested in education and humanities, and is willing to work on ways to further knowledge production.

• Is imaginative, resourceful and eloquent, and no less passionate about art and committed to experiencing and thinking our times.

• Has an international network of artists, peers or colleagues based on a deep interest and/or knowledge of art and culture.

• Has professional management experience in the arts sector or has familiarity with the workings of an arts or culture organization devoted to art and theory of the present.

• Inspires people and can work in a team.

• Has resilience and know-how to balance well the demands of life and work.

• Excellent communication skills in spoken and written English.

• Proficiency in spoken and written Dutch or is willing to learn Dutch.

• Fundraising skills in both the public and private sectors, and the ability to address these with an entrepreneurial spirit.

• Familiarity or interest in building cultural and strategic relations in the Netherlands and internationally; and the ability to plan these inventively.

• Experience with the dynamics of local and national governance and political relations, preferably in the Netherlands, and/or the ability to address these with an open mind.

• Lives in Rotterdam or is willing to relocate to this region.

Kunstinstituut Melly adheres to the Governance Code Cultuur, the Fair Practice Code, and the Code Cultural Diversity and Inclusion in The Netherlands. The institution welcomes job applicants from all genders and kinds of sexual-orientation, religions, cultural backgrounds, nationalities and physical abilities.

APPLICATION & SELECTION PROCESS

To create this job profile, a number of our stakeholders were consulted by the Supervisory Board of Kunstinstituut Melly or, in its representation, by Nienke Stuijt from VIE People. As part of the application review process, the Supervisory Board has created a Search Committee involving board members and external professionals.

The application review and selection procedure involves three phases:

1. Review of applications by Supervisory Board to create a shortlist; focus is on candidates' competencies in relation to the job position profile and requirements.

2. First round of interviews conducted by the Search Committee, via Zoom or in person in Rotterdam, with a select group of candidates; focus is on artistic vision and ability to carry it through.

3. Second round of interviews with a shorter list of candidates, conducted by the Search Committee in person in Rotterdam, plus meetings with key employees of Kunstinstituut Melly; focus is on artistic vision and personal character. We will also approach the professional references provided by the candidate.

If your circumstances require any special arrangements at any stage of our interview process, please let us know.

All involved in this review and selection process have signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) to ensure the privacy of the candidate's information and the exchanges held as part of their application process.

The receipt of applications to this position closes at 23:59 (CET) on April 16, 2023.

If you are interested in being considered candidate to this position, please fill out this form. The required documents are as follows:

• Motivation Letter (maximum two pages), describing the concepts and/or scope of your past work; reasons for being interested in this position; what you could bring to the institution.

• C.V.

• At least two professional references.

If you have any questions pertaining the job opening, please reach out to our HR manager Nienke Stuijt [nienke [​at​] kunstinstituutmelly.nl].

The appointment of the Director is expected to take place by 30 June 2023. The Supervisory Board selects and ratifies the appointment of the new Director.

The appointed Director is expected to start working full-time on or around 1 January 2024. The start date and contract details will be made in consultation with the selected candidate and the Supervisory Board of Kunstinstituut Melly.