Courtney Johnston wouldn’t call her career rise meteoric, even if everyone else does.

The 40-year-old took the reins of Te Papa Tongarewa last December, the youngest-ever chief executive of New Zealand’s national museum.

But Johnston has spent much of her life under the spell of museums, galleries and the art world – from a degree in art history at Victoria University of Wellington to arts commentating for Radio New Zealand, promoting Wellington’s City Gallery and, for five years, heading up The Dowse Art Museum in Lower Hutt.

“Some were surprised by my appointment, particularly because of my age,” says Johnston from her office on Te Papa’s second floor. “But I’ve worked hard to supercharge my experiences and leadership roles, and this really is my dream job. If you work in the museum field in New Zealand, then Te Papa should be the pinnacle of your career.”

Johnston once strolled these halls as a visitor host during university holidays. But, before that, there were 18 years spent largely on one road in Taranaki. “I grew up on a dairy farm, and both my primary and my secondary schools were on the same road so it was really quite a small world.”

She fled to the University of Otago (“as far away as possible”) but, two years into her arts degree, her father suffered a motorbike accident so she moved to Wellington to be closer to him.

Johnston’s vision for Te Papa, which recently celebrated its 22nd birthday, is to “do the heavy lifting around those conversations about what’s important to us”.

“Museums can do an enormous amount of service for their people by opening up our conversations about who we are and how we come together. What are the stories about New Zealand that we want to tell each other and the world?”

Home is a 10-minute walk away: a three-bedroomed apartment Johnston bought three years ago. As you’d expect, it’s a shrine to the art, ceramics and jewellery she’s been collecting for the past couple of decades, from the framed images by the late Peter Peryer to Paul Melser ceramics and necklaces from Auckland jeweller Warwick Freeman.

Johnston admits she’s constantly trying to bring more colour and texture into the second-floor space. “The Dowse has a strong tradition of colourful applied art, of rich layering and texture, and when I worked there I fell hard for ’70s’ and ’80s’ textiles. I’ve been trying to inject some of those bold influences into my life ever since.”

She’s also had to learn to be less precious about her collection since marrying Reuben Friend, Director of Porirua’s Pātaka Art + Museum, in 2018. Friend has three children – 11, 10 and 9 – from a previous relationship and they spend roughly half their time with the couple.

“A family of five uses much more than a couple does so I’ve had to unpack my grandmother’s Crown Lynn collection that I’d packed away. It’s taught me to appreciate the functionality of these pieces but also to become a lot less attached to them so, if the odd piece breaks, I’m okay with it.”

Courtney’s favourite things

01. Brown belt: I have been awarded the brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. It ties with my current job as the achievement I’ve worked hardest for and am most proud of.

02. Coffee grinder: My very, very beat-up coffee grinder is held together with packing tape (waste not want not, right?).

03. Book: My favourite book is Dodie Smith’s I Capture the Castle. I reread it every couple of years and, each time, find myself relating differently to this classic coming-of-age story.

04. Perfumes: About 10 years ago, I went through a phase of learning about and buying perfumes, and, while I’ve slowed down, I have about 20, with about a dozen in rotation and four or five that I wear most often. My two favourites sit on opposite ends of the spectrum: Cool Water by Davidoff, which is an amazingly accessible cologne, and Musc Ravageur by Maurice Roucel from the Frederic Malle range, which is far more niche.

05. Jim Greig pot: This is a gift from my Dowse days – a small Jim Greig pot kindly gifted to me by his family.

06. Kete: This kete was a gift from weaver Veranoa Hetet. She gave it to me after we worked with her and her whānau on a big project at The Dowse Art Museum, honouring the work of her mother and father, weaver Erenora Puketapu-Hetet and Rangi Hetet.

07. Crockery: I grew up in the shadow of Mount Taranaki and my grandparents lived on the same road as we did. These are from my Nana’s Egmont Crown Lynn crockery collection. I can remember the plates from many family dinners.

08. Plants: This is a cutting I’m growing from another cutting I was given by Jean Ngan from a plant in the Stokes Valley home she shared with her late husband, the artist Guy Ngan. The major Guy Ngan project at The Dowse in 2019 was one of the last projects I was involved with there.

09. Candlesticks: I’m lucky enough to own three cast-bronze candlesticks made by the German-born, Island Bay-based jeweller Karl Fritsch. They’re heavy enough to be doorstops and not actually terribly functional as candlesticks, but I love them.

10. Necklace: This silver and mother of pearl necklace is by Pauline Bern. I love Pauline’s work and this was a gift-to-self when I completed four years on the Museums Aotearoa board in mid-2019.