Summer Holiday Fun-Meet Matt-Our Curator

 

Have you ever wondered what you wanted to be when you grow up? Those of you who like dinosaurs and fossils might be interested in becoming a curator. A curator is someone who looks after all the old things in a museum, and they are often dinosaur freaks if the truth be told! We thought it was time you met Matt our curator and find out a little about how he came to be doing his very exciting job!

  • Matt was always very curious, asked many questions and spent a great deal of time outside. He had a love for the natural world and the peace it offered him.
  • He was fascinated by the things he found in the ground and at a young age started a collection of fossils he found in ploughed fields.
  • Matt found some schoolwork challenging due to dyslexia, but he always remained particularly interested in the natural world.
  • Matt spent time in his local library looking up (researching) information. Although this was not long ago, most people did not have access to the internet, which is how we search for information today.
  • Matt wrote to the headteacher to see if the school would include geology in the A-level choices. The school did and Matt cites this as a fortunate turn of events.
  • Matt went to university to study geology.
  • Following this he had a job for a year as a curatorial assistant at the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff.
  • He then went to another university to study for his master’s degree in Palaeobiology.
  • Matt has worked at BRLSI for 18 years looking after our collections.
  • When asked about a favourite part of his job, he said, “The huge variety of objects, their stories, and the creative opportunities in sharing it all with other people.”

 

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