By Robin Usher
''I THOUGHT, 'All life is here','' says Sue Roberts, the new chief executive of the State Library of Victoria, describing the impression made by the hordes of visitors she encountered when she first arrived at the Swanston Street building to be interviewed for the job.
''The volume and diversity of the crowd is what impressed me. There were students, retired people and academics, as well as others too hard to define. There is obviously a strong connection between the public and the library.''
Sue Roberts, State Library of Victoria chief executive.Credit: Rodger Cummins
Official numbers confirm her impression. More than 1.5 million people visited it last year, making it the busiest in the country after a 95 per cent growth in visitors over the past five years. The number of visits to the library's website was nearly double that at 2.8 million.
Roberts, 42, whose previous role was head librarian at Wellington's Victoria University in New Zealand, says one of the key challenges she faces is balancing the demands between managing the building and the growing online presence.
While some people question the need to maintain a physical presence at all, given the growth of online use, she stresses the building's importance. ''I am very conscious the State Library's role as an icon means a lot to the people of Victoria,'' she says.
''People could stay at home to read and study by making use of the internet but they seem to feel deep in their psyche a need to connect with others. That is a role the library can fill by providing a civic space for them to go.''
She says people feel a strong physical connection to the library's collection. ''The objects are as valuable in themselves as the information they contain,'' she says. ''The State Library's role is to preserve that for future generations.''
Roberts' upbringing in Lancashire gives her an insight into the role libraries play. ''They were a critical resource for me as a student because there were no books in my family home.''
She expects the library's complete collection of more than 2 million items will be available online during her lifetime. Only about 25 per cent has been digitised so far and the state government provided $5.6 million in last year's budget to help manage the growing demand.
A key challenge is to prepare for the challenges over the next decade. ''Nobody can be sure how the future will unfold,'' she says.
''We have to be ready to adapt to whatever new demands might arise. That means we can't afford to focus just on the building or the online activities.''
She is also keen to make the library even busier by reaching out to groups who do not already use it. ''The fact that it is such an icon can make the facade appear intimidating to some people.''
She will also maintain the growing program of exhibitions.
''There is an amazing collection here and the treasures belong to everybody. Exhibitions are a way of making people aware of them.''
Roberts says the current show, Love and Devotion: From Persia and Beyond, attracted 37,000 people in its first six weeks, and events associated with it quickly sold out.
''I think it proves there is a real thirst for these sorts of events in Melbourne,'' Roberts says.