Exhibits Specialist (Mount Maker)

The Smithsonian Institution is the world's largest museum, education, and research complex, with 21 museums and the National Zoo. This position is located in the Office of Exhibits, National Museum of Natural History.

The Exhibits Specialist (Mount Maker) is responsible for designing, fabricating, installing, and maintaining custom mounts for artifacts and museum objects at the National Museum of Natural History, ensuring their safe display, handling, preservation, and exhibition In this position, you will Fabricate mounts/brackets for specified specimens and objects from approved drawings and/or verbal instruction from the designer, curator, and conservator. Design mounts and brackets for museum objects, producing technical drawings and diagrams for review and approval by exhibition, curatorial, photography, publication, and conservation staff. Coordinate with exhibition, conservation, and collection staff to ensure the safe handling, movement, installation, and deinstallation of museum objects. Produce accurate castings that may require paints or intrinsic colorants, determines the best model making techniques, the appropriate materials, the correct color and a wide variety of other materials to make molds, fabricate diorama elements, lifelike models, and natural scenes to fulfill the specifications set by the exhibit designer or curator in the available time frame. Repair and finish fragile museum exhibit components and reproduce original exhibit parts that have been broken or damaged. Repair and maintains current exhibits, including the reproduction of original exhibit components that have been damaged and the repair of chipped and/or broken pieces with plaster, wood, plastic or other materials.

Conditions of Employment Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement. For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions on OPM website.

This position does have a positive education requirement.