Page 14 - Fiji Traveller Issue 2

turtles climb the walls—and exhibits that address environmental learn, by their interest, what we should start doing next and how
concerns. There is also an audiovisual aspect, where videos we should start changing.”
and stories about Fiji voyages can be viewed. This element will The Fiji Museum has received support from the United
extend to other parts of the gallery in the future. States and Australian governments for recent work, and the
Introducing elements speaking to climate change and Tokani (Friends of the Fiji Museum) group also fundraises for
environmental degradation of our oceans is part of an effort to the institution. Government’s most recent national budget also
shift perceptions of the museum being seen as just a place of allocated more funding than in recent years, and Igglesden
history and the past, says Igglesden. hopes this financial investment will continue. They will also be
“We're really trying to posit the present, but also the future looking to corporate partnerships.
within the story from the get-go. It is really important to look U.S. government funding enabled the ‘Urban Pathways’ paid
backwards to be able to move forward. We also need to look internship program, which included the Fiji Museum, and was
at the present because that is history. So we need to be able to aimed at looking how urban youth identify with, and experience
document all stages of history.” culture, and develop sustainable and viable employment for
Igglesden has been working with the Fiji Museum for 15 years, youth people in the cultural heritage sector.
but only started in her current role in November 2022. She will be Three of those interns are now museum staff members, and
overseeing the rest of the renovation work, and is keen to look at the program developed the museum’s first virtual open day. It
‘making and doing’ in future exhibits. was followed by a four-day workshop more recently, which saw
“So looking at, [for example] techniques of how masi making a different cohort spend time with the collection.
took place, how the history of textile in this culture is huge and One of the difficulties the museum has is cataloguing and
has gone into the present as a real high fashion story, which understanding what it has in its enormous collection. An
people don't really realise, you know, started hundreds of years inventory is underway, and Igglesden thinks there may be more
ago. than 100,000 items, but no one knows for sure. This includes 3D
“Dealing with galleries, both upstairs and downstairs will be objects, textiles and flat works, a natural history collection and a
challenging, because what the Museum does want to move strong archeology collection.
away from are just these little pockets of things, and really have This means there is a sense of discovery, even for long-term
a story to go through and talk about. And so we're in the process staff members. For example, Igglesden describes identifying a
of creating the story.” necklace she wanted to use for the outreach work recently.
One challenge the team will need to address is how to get “We gently lifted up [the necklace] and realised that it was
people coming back to the gallery. Traditionally, it’s a place Suva collected in the 1870s on the HMS Challenger expedition. We've
school children visit on a school excursion, but may never return got the name of the sailor on board who collected it, where it's
to, as a child or adult. Similarly, in the past, tourists often sped from. And lo and behold, it was one of these objects that nobody
through, not really engaging with the exbibits. really knew about… We found the original number on it when
Igglesden says programming, to bring out different objects it came in… And so we've been able to trace back that story to
and stories, will be important to encouraging return visits. But realise what it actually was, and what it actually meant.
perhaps one of the biggest transformations will be bringing down Being able to understand the story behind items in the
the walls, so the public can see curators and museum staff at collection is immensely satisfying, she says.
work in a living exhibition space. “I think I almost cried. I welled up in thinking that this is
“All of the work going on will be visible by the public. So that will something that I didn't really know was here, and that people
change every single day, every single hour, every half an hour, need to know it is here.
likely, you'll see something different. Creating those stories will “Being able to have others learn about that, but also come to
allow the entire collection to be seen. If you sit in front of those work here and find it themselves, it's going to be something that
windows every day and watch, you will see the entire production. could change somebody—it sounds a bit dramatic—but change
“I think for local communities, it is going to be a really important somebody's life in realising what it is, and what it means.”
part of the museum experience, because that will also help us

Photos clockwise from top left: Katrina Igglesden, ‘Preparing for the Races’, Suva,
August 2015, My Mana and Identity is in the Ocean (Epeli Tuibeqa), a museum staff
member during the official opening, the Ratu Finau

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