While my journey towards working in the museum and heritage sector started with a Bachelor’s degree in History and a love of visiting museums in Europe and Asia during my OE, it did not come to fruition until I started a Master of Museum and Heritage Practice at Victoria University.

By the time I completed my Master’s, I had gained invaluable sector experience through a placement at the New Zealand Police Museum where I researched and wrote about significant collection items, a summer scholarship in the Art Curatorial team at Te Papa matching Leslie Adkin’s photographs and negatives, and an internship with Wellington City Council’s Heritage team researching buildings proposed for district plan heritage listing.

After a short stint managing a regional research centre and archive in Thames, I now work for the Ashburton District Council as the Art Gallery and Museum Deputy Director. In a role created by the merger of previously separate Art Gallery and Museum facilities, I support our team with a schedule of frequently changing exhibitions, delivery of community programmes and effective management of our diverse collections. The highlight of my role so far has been working with Ngāi Tahu Archive to display an exhibition about their cultural mapping project Kā Huru Manu. This exhibition gave insight into the Ngāi Tahu history of Hakatere Ashburton through maps, stories, sketches, photographs and interactives that explored Māori place names of the region.

While my desire to work in the GLAM sector has been largely driven by my passion for the preservation and interpretation of New Zealand’s social history, in my role at Ashburton Art Gallery and Museum I have also developed a new appreciation for contemporary art and the impact of the messages and stories it can convey.