Director of the Boston Art Commission

Overview

The Mayor's Office of Arts and Culture (MOAC) is seeking an experienced and visionary cultural leader to serve as Director of the Boston Arts Commission.

Reporting directly to the Chief of Arts and Culture, the Director serves as the City's senior leader for public art, civic memory, monuments, memorials, and the stewardship of Boston's public art collection. The Director oversees the administration of the Boston Arts Commission (BAC), provides strategic leadership for public art policy and commissioning, and works to ensure that Boston's public realm reflects the creativity, histories, cultures, and aspirations of its residents.

The Director is responsible for guiding the City's approach to public art while building partnerships that expand opportunities for artists and communities. Working across government, philanthropy, cultural institutions, educational organizations, developers, community organizations, and the private sector, the Director will grow Boston's public art ecosystem and leverage new resources, sites, and commissioning opportunities that increase public access to arts and culture throughout the City.

As a member of the MOAC Leadership Team, the Director helps shape the City's broader cultural agenda while ensuring that public art contributes to Boston's quality of life, civic identity, neighborhood vitality, and creative economy.

The Director leads a multidisciplinary team responsible for public art programs, artist commissions, collections stewardship, and the administration of the Boston Arts Commission.

About the Boston Arts Commission:

The Boston Arts Commission is the City's independent public art authority and the steward of Boston's municipal art collection.

The Commission reviews, approves, commissions, and oversees artworks located on City-owned property while serving as a public forum for civic dialogue about art, memory, identity, design, and public space. Through its collection, policies, and commissioning programs, the Commission works to ensure that public art is accessible, representative, ambitious, and reflective of Boston's diverse communities.

The Director serves as the senior executive responsible for supporting the Commission's work, implementing its strategic priorities, and advancing public art as a vital component of Boston's civic life.

About the Mayor’s Office of Arts & Culture:

The Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture (MOAC) works in collaboration with our creative and cultural workforce to hardwire arts, culture, and the creative economy into Boston’s future.

Mayor’s Office of Arts & Culture is working to ensure Boston is a city where culture thrives in every neighborhood and where everyone can shape, access, and participate in cultural life. We partner with artists, cultural organizations, creative businesses, and communities to strengthen Boston’s creative economy, expand cultural infrastructure, and embed creativity into the everyday life of the City.

We believe creativity is essential public infrastructure. By investing in artists, cultural workers, and creative spaces, we help build a more connected, equitable, and vibrant Boston. Our work includes supporting the cultural sector through grants and programs, advancing affordable creative workspace and cultural facilities, and commissioning and caring for public art across the City.

Responsibilities

Civic Art Leadership & Vision:

• Provide strategic leadership for Boston's public art, monuments, memorials, and civic art programs.

• Develop and implement a long-term vision for public art that reflects Boston's values, histories, and future aspirations.

• Position Boston as a national leader in public art, artist commissioning, civic memory, and cultural participation.

• Advise the Chief of Arts and Culture, Mayor's Office, City departments, and external stakeholders on matters relating to public art and cultural expression in the public realm.

• Champion the role of artists and cultural practitioners in shaping the public life of the City.

Boston Arts Commission Administration:

• Lead the administration and operation of the Boston Arts Commission.

• Support Commissioners in reviewing proposals, policies, collection matters, and public art projects.

• Ensure transparent, equitable, and effective public review and decision-making processes.

• Oversee the preparation of Commission agendas, reports, recommendations, and public meetings.

• Maintain the integrity, transparency, and public trust of the Commission's work.

Public Art Policy & Governance:

• Develop policies, standards, and strategic frameworks related to public art on City-owned property.

• Oversee review processes for public art proposals, monuments, memorials, temporary installations, and civic art projects.

• Ensure artistic, technical, community, and equity considerations are embedded within public art decision-making.

• Lead the continued evolution of Boston's public art policies and commissioning practices.

• Guide implementation of the City's Percent-for-Art and related public investment programs.

Collection Stewardship & Conservation:

• Oversee the care, documentation, conservation, interpretation, and long-term stewardship of the City's public art collection.

• Establish collection priorities, conservation strategies, and long-range stewardship plans.

• Ensure the City's collection remains accessible as a cultural, educational, and civic resource.

• Oversee collection acquisitions, deaccessioning recommendations, conservation initiatives, and collection-related policy development.

Public Art Partnerships & Ecosystem Development:

• Develop and lead a citywide partnership strategy to expand opportunities for public art through collaboration.

• Build relationships with cultural institutions, universities, hospitals, foundations, developers, business districts, community organizations, and civic partners.

• Identify opportunities for co-commissioning, co-funding, and collaborative delivery of public art projects across Boston.

• Secure external resources and investment that expand public art opportunities for artists and communities.

• Position the Boston Arts Commission as a trusted partner and platform for organizations seeking to contribute to Boston's cultural life through public art.

• Foster partnerships that increase the scale, diversity, and geographic reach of public art across Boston's neighborhoods.

• Develop long-term relationships that strengthen the sustainability and stewardship of public art throughout the City.

• Pursue philanthropic, state, federal, and private funding opportunities that support long-term public art investment.

Artist Development & Community Engagement:

• Expand opportunities for Boston artists to participate in public commissions and civic projects.

• Support inclusive commissioning practices that reflect the diversity of Boston's creative community.

• Strengthen relationships with artists, cultural organizations, neighborhood groups, and residents.

• Promote public understanding of public art through educational initiatives, talks, exhibitions, publications, and community programming.

• Ensure communities are meaningfully engaged in shaping public art projects and civic cultural initiatives.

Leadership & Team Management:

• Direct, supervise, mentor, develop, and evaluate professional and administrative staff while fostering a high-performing, collaborative, and inclusive workplace.

• Establish strategic priorities, annual work plans, and performance goals.

• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, and public service.

• Support staff development, mentorship, and organizational capacity building.

• Oversee departmental budgets, grant programs, and operational resources associated with the Commission's work.

Interagency Collaboration:

• Serve as MOAC's lead representative on public art matters across City government.

• Collaborate with City departments, agencies, authorities, and external partners on initiatives affecting public space and cultural assets.

• Ensure public art and cultural considerations are integrated into broader City planning, design, and capital investment initiatives.

• Represent Boston in local, national, and international conversations relating to public art and civic culture.

Minimum Entrance Qualifications

• Five to seven (5-7) years of progressively responsible leadership experience in public art, arts administration, museums, cultural institutions, architecture, urban design, cultural policy, planning, or related fields.

• Bachelor's degree in Arts Administration, Museum Studies, Art History, Architecture, Urban Planning, Public Policy, or a closely related field is strongly preferred and can be substituted for two (2) years of experience. A combination of education and progressively responsible professional experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.

• Demonstrated leadership experience managing teams, programs, cultural institutions, or public initiatives.

• Strong understanding of public art commissioning, collections stewardship, cultural policy, civic engagement, and public governance.

• Experience working with boards, commissions, advisory bodies, or public review processes.

• Knowledge of contemporary issues relating to public art, monuments, memorialization, cultural representation, and public space.

• Experience developing strategic partnerships and managing relationships across multiple sectors.

• Strong budgeting, organizational, project management, and operational leadership skills.

• Excellent written, verbal, facilitation, and presentation skills.

• Demonstrated commitment to equity, inclusion, accessibility, and community-centered cultural practice.

BOSTON RESIDENCY REQUIRED Terms:

Union/Salary Plan/Grade: Non-Union/MO-11
Hours per week: 35

The City of Boston is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We invite applications from all qualified individuals and do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other protected category.