Head of Projects

ABOUT THE ROLE

Creative Time, New York City’s veteran and vanguard public arts presenter, is looking for a Head of Projects (HOP) to turn the vision of groundbreaking artists into reality and build on Creative Time’s 50-year legacy presenting expansive, imaginative, and groundbreaking projects to the public. 

Reporting to the Deputy Director and working closely with the Executive Director and Curator, the HOP is the departmental lead of the Projects team, and oversees partnerships, production, and timelines for all large-scale projects, public programs, and the Creative Time Summit, as well as other national and global initiatives. Together with two Project Managers, the HOP ensures the quality production, delivery, and impact of Creative Time artist commissions and programs. 

The HOP is a team leader who brings vision and enthusiasm to developing partnerships for and producing Creative Time artist commissions and programmatic initiatives, including artwork and artist project concept development, production, and engagement. The HOP establishes actionable goals, develops and monitors timelines and budgets, and ensures timely completion of deliverables.

The HOP supervises two Project Managers, is responsible for a smooth and efficiently functioning team, hires and supervises vendors and contractors, and facilitates communication and collaboration across departments, and with artists and external partners. The HOP secures sites and partnerships, and represents Creative Time with artists, city agencies, project partners, venues, vendors, fabrication teams, volunteers, and the public at large. 

We are looking for candidates who are extremely organized, self-directed, have keen decision making ability, are creative problem solvers, and have experience managing budgets. Experience working with fabricators and creating large scale environments, artwork, experiences, and public programs is a must. The ideal candidate is a good listener, relationship builder, and negotiator, and would bring a sense of control and calm to the fast-paced organization while managing projects and partnerships that are often complex and multi-faceted.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Department Leadership

• Cultivate an exceptional team. Lead the programming team to execute visionary and quality projects
• Initiate and ensure streamlined communications within the department as well as across the organization
• Collaborate with artists and creative teams to translate ideas into actionable goals, with project milestones and set shared expectations
• Maintain relationships with current, previous, and future artists and partners
• Present at staff meetings, board meetings, donor events, funder tours, and general cultivation events as necessary

Partnerships and Relationship Management

• Develop partnerships and serve as the main liaison with key stakeholders across projects and Summits
• Establish and maintain relationships with other cultural organizations, city and state agencies, and property owners, in order to realize complex projects at the highest level
• Secure project sites and negotiate site agreements; identify and maintain relationships with potential site partners for future projects
• Negotiate contracts and budgets with project partners
• Serve as representative of Creative Time and attend community board meetings and events relevant to upcoming and ongoing projects

Project Management

• Work closely with Executive Director and Curator to design and plan artist commissions and Summit programming, including concept and theme design, partnership development, outreach and contracting with artists and presenters, identifying and screening sites and advisors
• Lead project research, analysis, and feasibility studies, working closely with Curatorial to plan artist commissions and Summit programming
• Generate internal briefing documents and review all communications materials generated for the launch and promotion of a project
• Create, manage, and report on project budget; oversee all project expenditures
• Create and oversee project calendars and monitor milestones and content deadlines for production, engagement, and programming 
• Establish external affairs milestones
• Identify opportunities for collaboration and contributions across all departments, including potential fundraising and in-kind sponsorship opportunities
• Work with Project Managers on plans for permitting, project installation, maintenance, onsite staffing, and de-installation
• Supervise Project Managers to develop plans for ticketing, audience experience, and audience flow
• Work with Deputy Director and Project Managers on hiring and managing of all producers, site staff, volunteer coordinators, and project contributors
• Liaise with legal team on project related contracts and legal issues

Audience Building and Communications

• Work with Curator and Communications Coordinator to set goals around community engagement and audience building
• Work with Communications Coordinator to set project communication goals and; oversee design and production of communications assets, such as e-blasts, press releases, signage, and social media plans, etc.

QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

• At least 7 years of experience in project management, exhibition management, and art or object production and fabrication
• Demonstrable experience realizing ambitious public art projects and working with and between artists/creators, site owners/managers, fabricators/builders, and curators/conceivers
• Demonstrable experience designing and tracking large-scale budgets, managing contractors, and managing teams
• Comfort working collaboratively, taking initiative, and approaching obstacles with a curious, open mind
• Exceptional organizational, communication, and negotiation skills
• An understanding of socially engaged, public art projects
• An existing network of contacts at city and state agencies and government departments is a plus
• Proficiency in Google Suite and Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Knowledge of Asana, Google Sketch-up, CAD, and Photoshop is a plus. 

Interested and qualified candidates should submit a cover letter and resume detailing your relevant background and skills, plus two reference contacts, as one PDF document. 

Email materials as a single PDF document to [email protected] with subject line: “2025 Head of Projects.” No calls please. 

Creative Time is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion or creed, gender, gender identity or expression, familial status, sexual orientation, disability, national origin, ability, age, arrest or pre-employment conviction record, or military status.

Our work at Creative Time is inherently political, social, and invested in the global justice

movements of our time. It is also fun, experimental, and often very delightful. We value individuals who embody those values, backgrounds, and lived experience.

09/15/2025