A job ad posted on the New York Foundation for the Arts website looking for an executive assistant has gotten a LOT of attention…
And NOT in a good way. The position reads almost like a parody (& seems underpaid the $65,000 to $95,000 salary) given the extensive responsibilities.
The “mystery family” seeking a candidate determined to
make life easier for the couple in every way possible” including by managing their “dog systems,” “closet systems,” gardening, drafting emails and social media posts, picking up clothes from “high-end stores,” booking “high-end travel,” providing IT support, helping with “in-studio cats,” managing house cleaning, providing childcare, being available on nights and weekends, signing an NDA, AND “driving the family to the Hamptons—after packing their bags..?”
Insiders say that all signs point to a well-known power-couple, artist Tom Sachs and wife (former Gagosian gallery director) Sarah Hoover.
A former Sachs employee told Artnet News that it was the mention of an,
“organizational officer” that “clocked it” in their mind.
And dog systems and closet systems. There’s only one person who would say those three things.”
Plus, the ad looks awfully similar to previous Sachs job listings.
Others “clocked” them too. Maika Pollack, director of the John Young Museum of Art and University Galleries at the University of Hawai‘i, tweeted simply
lol Tom Sachs and Sarah Hoover.”
Another user wrote,
it’s gotta be tom sachs and sarah hoover I feel it in my bones
it’s gotta be tom sachs and sarah hoover I feel it in my bones https://t.co/oogu5Gt3Ro
— kt dawn (@ktdawns) February 28, 2023
Emily Colucci’s blog Filthy Dreams first brought the job listing to light, and was smart enough to save it as a PDF before its owners scrubbed it from the internet.
A commenter named “Ellen” wrote,
I can assure you this is Tom Sachs and his ‘organizational officer.’”
According to Artnet News, the artist, who is known for his Space Program series of sculptures related to NASA space missions, demands that viewers of his work share his extreme attention to detail and sometimes perform menial tasks —such as sorting screws— in order to participate in it.
Visitors to his 2017 “Space Camp” on New York’s Governors Island had to watch a 40-minute film and complete a grueling obstacle course in order to take home a pair of Sachs’s new NIKECraft Mars 2.0 sneakers. Before granting journalists interviews, he instructs them to watch a 21-minute film explaining the rules of his studio.
Hoover, who spent nearly 15 years working at Gagosian, is known for going to galas and sporting glamorous outfits—which probably come from “high-end stores.”
She is currently a board member at the Art Production Fund and Recess Art nonprofits.
She has also written a forthcoming book on the challenges of pregnancy and motherhood (even with a small army of nannies, assistants, a chef, and other help).
Even for an industry like the art world, the Sachs-Hoover executive assistant is… A LOT.
The New York Times called it
the worst job ever.”
Horrible.
Btw, are they’re still hiring?
(Images, screen grabs, Nike, Tom Sachs; via Artnet News)
