Description
Title of the position: Objects Conservator; Level: Senior or Head of Lab
Department: Objects Conservation, Balboa Art Conservation Center
Reports to: Director of Operations
Status: Part-time or Full time options available, plus benefits. FLSA-exempt.
Location: In-person with flexible schedule opportunities
Compensation: $80,000 - $85,000 Full-time, DOE
About the Position:
The Balboa Art Conservation Center (BACC), a nonprofit regional art conservation center in San Diego, CA is looking to hire an Objects Conservator to join our team at a Senior level or Head of Lab. This position will be an important addition to the BACC team, as it expands its service to fulfill a reinvisioned mission to serve a more diverse audience and make conservation more accessible and relevant to all communities.
The Senior Objects Conservator will support BACC’s fee-for-service conservation work by leading our Objects Conservation Department. This individual will lead the Objects Team by upholding high standards for treatment, providing technical oversight, and mentoring conservators at all levels to support professional growth and consistency. The ideal candidate will have high capacity in the treatment of objects, well-developed hand-skills, and a track-record of excellent decision-making for complex treatments. The Senior Objects Conservator will help develop and refine workflows that maximize efficiency for a team while maintaining the highest standards of conservation treatment, ethics, and client service.
Consistent with BACC’s efforts to create opportunities for leadership and management experience for practicing conservators and collections care professionals, this Objects Conservation position will have the opportunity to both be a practicing art conservator as well as part of BACC’s conservation services leadership team, contributing to building a model for nonprofit regional centers that enables both sustainability and inclusion.
If you have dreamed of being a change-maker in the conservation community, but do not want to leave behind the daily work which drew you to the profession, then this position may be for you.
About Team BACC:
The BACC conservation team treats a broad range of objects from a wide variety of museums, historic societies, cultural collections and private clients. The team also provides services such as technical analysis, preservation assessments, capacity building workshops, consultation on environmental monitoring, storage, exhibition practices, preventive conservation, and grant writing support. Currently BACC labs service objects, paper, paintings, frames,and preventive conservation. Across departments, BACC’s conservators and staff are a collaborative, innovative, and supportive group who enjoy active involvement with operations at BACC and the greater art and cultural heritage community who we have the pleasure to work with daily. We are a small but mighty team of eleven full time staff who mentor interns and fellows on a regular basis and work passionately to demystify and democratize art conservation in our regional community. This position reports to and works collaboratively with the Director of Operations to nourish a positive and healthy workplace and will be critical in ensuring BACC’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity is practiced both externally with our communities, institutions, and clients as well as internally, with our staff, our field, and our process.
PRIMARY DUTIES
CONSERVATION
Adhere to conservation best practices (such as Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice of the American Institute for the Conservation of Artistic and Historic Works (AIC))
Approve treatment proposals, quotes, treatments and reports, and manage quality control of service area output
Conduct surveys, exams, assessments, and analysis for prevention, conservation, and education projects without supervision
Perform advanced treatments and treatment-related functions, including photography or filming, condition assessments, treatment proposals (with cost estimates), treatment reports and other forms of analysis/documentation with minimal to no supervision
Participate in collections management recommendations, collections maintenance, research into artists and materials, collection surveys, and disaster remediation
Conduct research on conservation topics,, technology, and business practices when necessary to stay up to date on innovation and ethics in the field of conservation
Develop concepts, materials, and opportunities to teach, train, or publish for the conservation community as needed
ENGAGEMENT
Participate in the development of outreach and engagement initiatives
Support institutional member relationships
Participate in community led conservation as a learner and knowledge sharer
Support public programming and/or special events as needed
Remain current in evolving conservation practices, conduct research in the field of culturally appropriate conservation and present those results in the form of public lectures and publications as needed
Communicate directly with customers and deliver excellent customer service
Represent BACC in joint projects with collecting institutions, including but not limited to grant support, collections care assessments, environmental assessments, emergency preparedness, emergency response procedures, and large scale conservation projects
Share in our commitment to anti-racism, decolonial approaches to collections care, inclusion, and access. This role is critical in ensuring BACC’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity is practiced both externally with our communities, institutions, and clients as well as internally, with our staff, our field, and our process
ADMINISTRATIVE/SUPERVISORY: Senior Objects Conservator
Support the mission and goals of the entire organization by aiming to achieve sustainability, impact, and relevance for the whole organization
Support BACC’s efforts to build a collaborative leadership model
Ensure the success of the service area in meeting revenue projections, service goals, and contributions to the organization's mission.
Empower, encourage, and support staff and conservation teams
Ensure service area maintains consistent and accurate time, project and quality tracking
Support the Conservation Service area and help ensure all team members set and meet quarterly and annual KPI’s
Supervise and manage workflows, schedules, quality of outputs for conservation service area
Work with Director of Operations to identify incoming project needs
Maintain accurate, retrievable and searchable records in databases and files (shared drives, Airtable, monday.com, etc)
Ensure service area abides by best practices and health and safety protocols
Act as an external ambassador and internal role model for the organization
ADMINISTRATIVE/SUPERVISORY: Head of Objects Conservation
All of the above in addition to:
Support full spectrum of HR functions, from recruiting to separation, staffing, performance reviews and staff professional development as necessary
Support the conservation service area in developing efficiency models, process improvements, and key performance indicators to maximize productivity
Assess short and long-term bandwidth for revenue generation and project planning
In collaboration with the Executive Director and the Director of Operations, oversee analysis, collect and maintain statistics, reports, revenue plan, and other metrics to assess and improve functions and develop policies and procedures for Conservation Service Area process improvements
Salary & Benefits
$80,000 - $85,000 DOE
Benefits for Full Time Include (health and PTO benefits for part-time positions are pro-rated):
15 days of vacation to start; increases to 20 days after one year of employment, and 25 days after 10 years of employment.
10 days of paid sick leave
14 paid holidays (plus a winter break)
Professional Development Stipend and paid time to participate in professional growth activities
Health benefits (100% employee Medical and partial dental)
TruStage retirement program. (BACC will match up to 5% of employee’s contribution after one year of employment)
Up to $5,000 relocation assistance
Last Updated: 7/29/2026
Application Process:
The application review process will begin on August 15, 2026 and the position will remain open until filled.
Please send the following documents:
A statement of interest
A current CV
A writing sample (such as a technical exam or research paper)
A portfolio containing three (3) treatments (can be submitted in digital or paper format)
By email to Lgomezfranco@bacc.org with the subject line: “Head of Objects Conservation"
-OR-
By US Mail to:
Leticia Gomez Franco, Executive Director
Balboa Art Conservation Center
PO Box 3755
San Diego, CA 92163
If selected for an interview, the candidate must provide name and contact information for two references.
Requirements
POSITION: HEAD OF OBJECTS CONSERVATION SERVICE AREA
QUALIFICATIONS
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Demonstrated commitment to anti-racism, diversity, equity, inclusion, access, and representation in professional, personal, or community settings
Advanced training from a recognized art or objects conservation program
Highly developed practical skills with ability to accurately assess deterioration and damage, formulate appropriate treatment plans, document, analyze, and undertake treatments not only independently but as a team leader
Ability to understand the diverse environments, available resources, and cultural priorities of our clients and develop conservation treatment plans that are technically appropriate, culturally informed, and tailored to specific needs
Advanced knowledge of both chemical and physical properties of artistic materials, conservation materials, and deterioration processes
Knowledge of the principles and practices of preventive conservation and ability to consider these when developing treatment plans and aftercare recommendations
Readiness to participate in workshop development and outreach
Ability to provide guidance on treatment and perform quality control on services
Ability to manage valuable tangible property (e.g. supplies, equipment, customers’ property, laboratory space, etc.)
Strong leadership skills and team management capacity
Ability to work independently and apply critical thinking and creative problem solving
Ability to create, implement, and manage project timelines, task management, and schedules for the Conservation Service Area in collaboration with the Director of Operations
Ability to supervise and mentor associate and assistant conservators, fellows, and interns
Ability to navigate common administrative software (e.g. Microsoft 365, Adobe Creative Cloud, etc.), cloud-based business solutions (e.g. Google Drive, SharePoint, AirTable, monday.com, etc.) and mobile technology
Ability to lead collaboratively, enforce accountability measures, and implement support systems to help manage Objects team and projects
Knowledge of state and federal safety rules as they apply to lab settings, safety data sheets (SDS), as well as attention to BACC operating, maintenance, and procedure manuals
Ability to create, implement, and manage team timelines, task management, and schedules
Knowledge of personal safety equipment and standards
Candidate must be authorized to work in the U.S. at the time of application
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Objects treatment experience in, but not limited to: Metals, wood, plastic, and ceramics
Project management experience
Ability to analyze, recommend and implement process improvements for teams and services
Ability to create, manage, and reconcile department budgets, revenue projections, and work plans for the Objects Conservation Service area
Experience with source community collaboration in the care of of cultural heritage
Ability to travel overnight for onsite work
Valid drivers license
Experience with sourcing materials, contractors, and other necessary vendors that fall outside of BACC’s scope, but are needed to successfully complete treatment projects
Experience with Public Works and/or government contracts
Experience and understanding in OSHA safety requirements necessary for work with Public Works
Ability to support full spectrum of fundraising, grant management and/or contract management (i.e. prospecting to application to reporting)
