Courtney Johnston (born ) is a

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

museum professional, a national radio correspondent, and the chief executive of the

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. Usually known as Te Papa ( Māori for ' the treasure box'), it opened in 1998 after the merging of the National Museum of New Zealand ...

Early life and education

Born in about 1979, Johnston grew up on dairy farm on Mangorei Road in

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

. She attended Mangorei School and New Plymouth Girls' High School before moving south, initially to Otago, then to

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

to study and work as a visitor host at Te Papa. In 2004 she earned a master's degree in art history from

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington (), also known by its shorter names "VUW" or "Vic", is a public university, public research university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of New Zealand Parliament, Parliament, and w ...

, with a thesis on art historian Peter Tomory.

Career

Johnston has lived and worked in Wellington with roles at a variety of galleries and cultural institutions, including the

Adam Art Gallery The Adam Art Gallery (in Māori language, Māori: ''Te Pātaka Toi'') is a purpose-built arts gallery located in the Kelburn Campus of Victoria University of Wellington in Wellington, New Zealand. History On 15 July 1997, Jenny Harper and Tin ...

City Gallery Wellington City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi is a public art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand. History City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi began its life as the Wellington City Art Gallery on 23 September 1980 in a former office block located at 65 ...

, and from 2012 to 2018 was the director of the

Dowse Art Museum The Dowse Art Museum is a municipal art gallery in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. Opening in 1971 in the Lower Hutt CBD, The Dowse occupies a stand-alone building adjacent to other municipal facilities. The building was completely remodelled in 2 ...

after roles at the

National Library of New Zealand The National Library of New Zealand () is charged with the obligation to "enrich the cultural and economic life of New Zealand and its interchanges with other nations" (National Library of New Zealand (Te Puna Mātauranga) Act 2003). Under the ...

and Boost New Media where she worked in communications and web roles. In 2019, Johnston became the youngest chief executive to head The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa where in 2024 she introduced a $35 entry fee for international visitors. She is also a board member of Arts Wellington and the Wellington Performing Arts Trust and the immediate past chair of the umbrella group Museums Aotearoa. She has worked as an arts correspondent for

Radio New Zealand Radio New Zealand (), commonly known as RNZ or Radio NZ, is a New Zealand public service broadcaster and Crown entity. Established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995, it operates news and current affairs station, RNZ National, and a classi ...

's "Nine to Noon" programme since 2010.

Awards

Johnston was the 2015 recipient of a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust travel grant for researching contemporary museum practices in the U.S.

Personal life

In 2022 Johnston was living in inner city Wellington apartment with her husband Reuben Friend. She has a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

References

External links

Courtney Johnston interviews on Radio New Zealand

Courtney Johnston
on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnston, Courtney 1970s births Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People associated with the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Women museum directors Directors of museums in New Zealand Victoria University of Wellington alumni 21st-century New Zealand writers New Zealand radio presenters New Zealand women radio presenters People from Taranaki