Job Opening Title:
Archive Fellow
Name of Employer:
Visual AIDS
Job Site Location (City AND State):
New York, NY
Application Deadline:
June 21st, 2026
Minimum Degree Requirement:
Bachelors
Years of experience required:
1-2
Salary Range:
$25/hour
Job Opening URL:
https://visualaids.org/blog/hiring-clir-archive-fellow
Job Description (if URL to posting not available). Include instructions for how to apply:
In 2024, Visual AIDS received a donation of over 500 audio and video tapes from David Hirsh, an arts writer and one of the founders of the Visual AIDS archive. The collection contains interviews with over 300 gay and lesbian artists, gallerists, and curators in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
With funding support from the Council on Library and Information Resources, we are beginning a three-year project to digitize and describe the tapes, make them available online, and activate the collection with public programming.
We are happily seeking applications for a one-year Archive Fellow position to support us with this ongoing work.
The Archive Fellow will support the Community Archivist in publishing a finding aid to the David Hirsh Tapes Collection. The Fellow will be responsible for confirming permissions with all interview subjects, gathering contextual and biographical information for each interview, reviewing and editing transcripts, and writing descriptive notes for the finding aid. This role involves research and writing as well as direct contact with interviewees and estates.
We are now accepting applications for the Archive Fellow position — please see below for more information. Deadline: June 21st.
Job Description — Archive Fellow
Part time, temporary, in-person position
24 hours/week, September 2026–September 2027
Compensation: $25/hour
Duties include:
Liaise with interview subjects
Conduct research to find contact information for interview subjects or estates
Contact artists represented in the collection to determine the level of access and permission they would like to provide to their interview, while upholding our values as a community-based archive
Gather biographical information from interview subjects to better contextualize materials in the collection and use this to write comprehensive biographies for subsequent finding aid
Quality control and edit transcripts and audiovisual access files
Review and correct computer-generated transcripts for accuracy
Draw on knowledge of downtown and queer art history to correct spellings of proper names
Edit audiovisual access files as requested by interview subjects
Assist with the description of the collection and creation of a finding aid
Synthesize biographical information to create notes for finding aid
Write descriptions of tape contents for finding aid
Assist in inputting information into finding aid on ArchivesSpace
The Archive Fellow should:
Be a people person who is comfortable communicating directly and empathetically with our broad and diverse constituency across age, race, sexuality, gender, and ability.
Have 1-2 years of professional experience that demonstrate high attention to detail and ability to self-manage multiple tasks on a timeline
Have a strong interest in learning about the intersections of AIDS activism, related cultural production, and contemporary and historic artistic communities. Previous work in the field of HIV and AIDS is not required. Interest and familiarity with queer art histories of the 1980s and 90s is a plus.
Be able to work in-person at the Visual AIDS office in Chelsea for the majority of their hours.
Hold or be pursuing a degree in Library and Information Science, Art History, or related fields, or the equivalent experience and expertise.
Experience with Adobe Creative Cloud (specifically audio and video editing) is preferred.
Experience with processing archival collections, archival management, and using ArchivesSpace a plus, but not required
Commitment and Compensation: This is a part-time (3 days a week, 24 hours per week) temporary position, primarily working in-person at the Visual AIDS office in Chelsea, New York. Compensation is $25/hr. Part-time employees receive paid time off and paid sick leave, but are not eligible for health or dental insurance.
To apply: Send a cover letter, résumé, writing sample (1 page maximum), and references as a single PDF file to jobs@visualaids.org by June 21st, 2026.
This project is made possible with support from the Council on Library and Information Resources.