OCCUPATION: MUSEUM CURATOR

Name: Paul Apodaca

Employer: Bowers Museum of Cultural Art

Thumbs up: “We help people learn more about each other through the art they create and to gain a perspective on the history they live through. The artifacts and the people who made them become treasures and new-found family members.”

Thumbs down: “Schools, libraries, museums and zoos need protection from the fluctuations that occur in our society. These institutions are the keepers of our civilization. Without them we are free only to destroy ourselves.”

Next step: “To create 21st-Century institutions that will reach larger numbers of people than ever before. The world is shrinking and we need to know about ourselves and each other more now than at any other point in history.”

Advice: “A curator must be an advocate and avoid being a dilettante. It is fine to know lots of collectors and dealers but you must first know your subject and your audience. Help people to find how they can incorporate art, science and history into newspaper articles, television programs, school curriculum and their daily lives. Museum collections and exhibits only have worth if people use them.”

Salary range: In Orange County, $20,000 to $60,000 depending on the size of the collection and institution.

Hours: Curators work 40 to 60 hours a week. But evenings and weekends are often spent at conferences, conducting research, lecturing or installing exhibitions.

Educational and training requirements: Scientific knowledge of preservation, conservation and collections management in addition to training in a specific school of art, science discipline or cultural history period. Most curators have a master’s degree and some have doctorates or specialty expertise. Curators are expected to publish articles about their research or teach at symposiums or local universities.

Size of work force: Small. In Orange County, fewer than 10 people work as museum curators.

Expected demand: Limited because most curators have long tenure at their institutions. Some curators move into museum administration or into academia.

Job description: Curators care for the collections put under their charge by researching and documenting the items and advising museum administrators on their proper care. They direct efforts to acquire additional artifacts and organize educational programs. They exchange information with other museums when conducting research, preparing exhibitions and arranging for the loan of collection objects.

Major employing industries: Museums, universities, corporate and private collections.

For information: Contact the California Assn. of Museums at (213) 744-3343 or the American Assn. of Museums at (202) 289-1818.

Researched by JANICE L. JONES / Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Times