 Hale joined the staff of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 1948 as the first curator of the department of contemporary American art, a position he held until 1966.Among his other accomplishments, Hale facilitated the Met's acquisition of Jackson Pollock's monumental poured painting "Autumn Rhythm", 1950, amid opposition from the museum's trustees.Hale's artwork was featured in one-man shows at the Stamford Museum and at the Staempfli Gallery in New York.