What drives new Whanganui Museum chief

The introduction of Dr Eric Dorfman to the Whanganui Regional Museum this week marks a period of growth and change for an iconic New Zealand institution. Patrick Drabczynski met the intellectual heavyweight to find out why he is so excited to be at the helm of one of New Zealand's historic cultural bastions.

A commanding presence at well over 1.8m tall, Dr Eric Dorfman initially appears austere. That is until he speaks, and his natural American warmth becomes apparent.
His speech is erudite and articulate, although you never feel he's talking down to you.
The thought occurs to me that, both physically and intellectually, he probably is.
His personable nature and relaxed attitude make him easily accessible, like the best American literature - weighty with ideas, yet instantly readable.
Unexpectedly, Dr Dorfman enthusiastically announces to me that he has a bright vision for the future of the museum in Wanganui, and he goes on to say believes that future is right under our fingertips.
And furthermore, he wants everyone to know about it.
"I want to bring the wealth of culture in Wanganui to the world," he said.
"I don't know if people realise the depth and breadth of the collection we have here. The museum is an academic treasure trove, with one of the most broad and unique collections I have ever worked with.
"I fell in love with the depth of history in this place and the bicultural community here. That unique relationship between these two threads of human history, and their respective relationships to the natural history of this region, is so attractive to me as an academic."
Wanganui, he believes, is one of the most historically and culturally rich places in New Zealand, with a unique intertwining of cultural stories. Stories that perhaps, he muses, aren't visible enough to the people.
Far from being stifled by the diminutive size of Wanganui, Dr Dorfman believes the museum has one of the most historically important collections in the country.
It is an institution he believes deserves national and international museological recognition.
And he is sincere about this belief. He envisions the museum as a place that attracts academics for study and collegiality, and he sees himself as the catalyst.
"This museum has an incredible number of stories to tell, both about the region it serves and belongs to and the wider world," he said. "At the moment, those stories are only partly visible to the public. I want the community to know what we - what they - have."
Far from being a lone rider however, he sees the coming challenge as an interactive process that involves the Wanganui community as much as the museum staff and the wider museological institutions of New Zealand.
"With the help of the International Committee for Museums and Collections of Natural History, I intend to leverage everything we do on a national and even global stage. But simultaneously, that means reinforcing and expanding our connection to the community we serve. I want the growth and development of this project to be for and by the people of Wanganui."
Eric Dorfman was brought up with what he calls a typically American philosophy by a German-Austrian father and a Russian mother in the Bay area of California.
As an only child, the world was completely open to him and he was encouraged to pursue every interest.
Developing in an "academically indulgent" environment, Dr Dorfman says with some lament, toys were discouraged while encyclopaedias were thrust upon him.
No wonder then his intellectual interests are so eclectic and various, even encyclopaedic. He might be described as a Renaissance man.
Equally passionate for the arts as he was scientifically inquisitive, the young Dorfman excelled as a young pianist while gazing down through microscopes into other worlds and obsessing about dinosaurs in picture books.
"At the University of California San Diego we were encouraged to take subjects entirely different to our major. I selected marine biology," he said, "which I fell in love with immediately".
He describes a moment in this period, which set the tone for his life when he was forced to chose between sitting a chemistry exam and participating in a dress rehearsal for an opera performance.
"That decision, choosing the chemistry exam, reset the course of my life. I had always thought I would be involved in the arts."
He says from that point his passion for the arts took a back step, while he pursued his studies for a master of science in marine science in California and a PhD in ecology from the University of Sydney.
He has conducted research into animals both behind the glass and in the wild, experiences, he says, that are very different from each other.
"I have worked in zoos, caring for large African animals. But that never prepared me for my experience living just 20 minutes away from a wild game reserve in South Africa."
Meanwhile, he pursues his passion for music, theatre and literature, melding the worlds of art and science into one expansive experience of the world.
"Though I've always felt my intellectual duality, my love of the arts and my scientific curiosity have intertwined throughout my life," he said. "For example, at one point during my studies I made a living doing scientific illustration."
And that duality of interest has been a theme throughout his life.
Today he claims a love of Baroque classical music and Monteverde opera while also enjoying pop stars Lady Gaga and Pink.
"I adore the opulence and excessiveness of today's pop music. In a way it recalls the melodrama of opera and Baroque, just in a contemporary style."
His life has been broad ranging and eclectic, something he feels pushed him towards museum studies.
"Where you are constantly making new connections between objects and their histories, constantly resetting the marks and retelling the tales of how life is for humans and animals."
When he arrived in New Zealand he worked at Te Papa. He went from there to direct Eklektus Inc, "which involved managing a collective of experts focused on museum strategy and the creation of large-scale visitor experiences. Clients include museums, art galleries and visitor centres in Australasia, North America, the Middle East and Europe."
He has depth of experience of museological communication matched by few, and it is this perspective he wants to bring to Wanganui. "I want to take the fantastic heritage we have and push it forward into the contemporary age, retelling these ancient stories with new strategies of communication that reach a wider audience."