Onsite Residency Manager

Job Title: Onsite Residency Manager

Organization: I-Park Foundation, Inc.

Website: www.i-park.org

Location: East Haddam, Connecticut

Sector: Non-profit arts organization

Position Level: Staff

Education: Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

Position Type: Full time April – November (average 42 hours/week), part time December – March (average 15 – 20 hours/week)

Options During the Winter Shutdown:

• Remain onsite with free access to an artist’s studio of your choice, maintain ongoing work responsibilities: fellows’ engagement, social media, manage the selection process for the 2023 season
• Leave the premises, maintain the above ongoing work responsibilities remotely
• Some combination of the above
• Receive full salary during the winter shutdown despite reduced work hours

Compensation: I-Park offers a competitive compensation package and generous benefits, including health insurance. This position comes with year-round use of a one bedroom home adjacent to the I-Park campus. This is a key element of the “onsite” element of the position. Annual salary of $35,000 to $40,000 depending on experience and skill set.

Job Description

The Onsite Residency Manager (ORM) manages most all aspects of I-Park’s multi-disciplinary General Residency Program (6-8 artists in residence during each 4-week session). The primary goal is to maintain an organizational structure that optimizes the opportunity for each artist to have a productive, rewarding (perhaps even transformative) and memorable residency experience. This involves helping to minimize distractions and other obstacles to their creativity, providing them safety and security and delivering attentive artists’ support.

The ORM reports to the Managing Director and supervises three part-time staff members: the housekeeper, chef and seasonal intern.

Required Skills, Experience, Attributes

• Kindness, generosity, sensitivity, reliability, a nurturing demeanor  
• Resourcefulness – you enjoy and are adept at problem solving
• Highly organized with excellent time management skills
• Managerial presence – you have the desire and capacity to earn the respect of the group and maintain an appropriate balance between tolerance/permissiveness and decorum
• Excellent communication skills, including a reasonable command of the fine art of managing expectations
• Background in the arts and associated creative disciplines
• In response to provocative, sometimes persistent, artists’ requests, you have the temperament, wisdom and creativity to know when, and how, to say yes – and when to say no
• Valid driver’s license and proper documentation for working in the U.S.

Optional, Desirable Skills

• Personal experience as an artist-in-residence in a program such as ours
• Social media: ability to create engaging online campaigns and monitor activity and impact
• Experience with the SlideRoom application processing software
• Tech savviness: A/V systems, wi-fi, office equipment
• CPR and/or related training

Duties and Responsibilities.

During the Residency Season

• Manage all pre-, in- and post-residency communications with the artists including pre-residency interviews and surveys, prepare welcome materials, a group orientation upon arrival, periodic group memos, end of session survey
• Schedule and facilitate artists’ arrivals/departures, including occasional after-hours situations on arrival day
• Coordinate dietary restrictions with the chef
• Prepare the studios, including personalized requests, before the arrival of each group of artists
• Ensure that general program commitments and personalized requests are being fulfilled in a timely, competent manner
• Organize and manage residency related events and activities: welcome dinner, Artists’ Exchange, private studio crawl, Open Studios, field trips, guest visits, grocery runs
• Maintain an adequate inventory of tools, supplies and equipment
• Ongoing: be observant and deal with and/or report: issues relating to the artists’ comfort and health, accidents/incidents, damages, safety and security concerns, potential inter-personal issues, items in need of repair or replacement, waste and inefficiencies
• Oversee the composers’ audio gear inventory and stay on top of the maintenance and tuning of the pianos
• Foster an inclusive, respectful, collegial atmosphere within the group

• Manage, coordinate the monthly video shoot and ensure adequate, non-intrusive photo documentation of the artists
• Be on call to handle after hours emergencies and non-emergency inquiries
• Take responsibility for keeping the Residencies segment of the website up to date, including proposing new content
• Gather content for social media posts: images, text, video and audio files
• Emcee the “select presentations” segment of the Open Studios event

Fellows’ Engagement

• Establish, and then maintain, ongoing relationships with our artists post-residency, including our 1000+ “fellows,” going back to 2001: announce/promote fellows’ opportunities, social media, quarterly newsletter, encourage participation in I-Park’s membership program and fellows’ appeal

Gratifications

• Work in a beautiful, peaceful natural setting surrounded and inspired by talented, interesting artists, writers, composers and architects from around the world
• Take pride in having provided high impact residency experiences to our artists – and having made a positive impact on their lives and careers
• Become a key player in a passionate arts organization seeking to make a major impact on the regional community and the greater culture

Notes

If you happen to live within a 10-minute drive from I-Park and do not require the lodging we can discuss annual salary alternatives.