COLOSSUS OF SCIENCE

DYLAN OWEN

DESCRIPTION Sir Paul Callaghan, 2012

MAKER / ARTIST Murray Webb (b. 1947)

REFERENCE New Zealand Cartoon and Comics Archive (DC-Group-0003: DCDL-0020679)

This caricature of the eminent physicist Sir Paul Callaghan (1947–2012) by cartoonist Murray Webb portrays him as a polymath astride Aotearoa, juggling his extraordinary range of scientific interests and experiences. It is a fitting tribute to one of New Zealand’s most recognisable and prominent scientists.

Well known for his work ethic, boundless enthusiasm and curiosity, Callaghan focused his scientific research on the fields of magnetic resonance and nanotechnology. Among his string of awards and achievements were 2011 New Zealander of the Year and the Royal Society of New Zealand’s Rutherford Medal in 2005, given for ‘preeminent research, scholarship or innovation by a person, or team’.

Callaghan’s legacy included helping establish the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, of which he was director from 2002 to 2008. Today, this centre for scientific research excellence is focused on a sustainable future through the development and adoption of new and innovative technologies and materials.

As an energetic and articulate public science communicator, Callaghan both celebrated and demystified science with an enthusiasm equal to his vision for a prosperous future New Zealand, one he detailed in his 2009 book Wool to Weta: ‘If we are sufficiently bold and determined we can make New Zealand a place where our young people see their best future.’

Callaghan was also an environmentalist and an ardent supporter of both Wellington’s Zealandia (the world’s first fully fenced urban ecosanctuary) and a pest-free New Zealand. He outlined both of these initiatives in his last public speech, delivered a month before he died.

Born in the same year as Callaghan, caricaturist Murray Webb has been described not only as New Zealand’s most underrated caricaturist, but also as one of the ‘three best caricaturists in the world’. For more than three decades his caricature portraits have captured famous (and some infamous) New Zealanders and international personalities.

Webb’s skill lies in his ability not only to capture someone’s likeness, but also to seamlessly encapsulate their persona. Here, his caricature of Callaghan cleverly identifies his subject’s huge range of scientific interests despite their complexity, along with his congenial nature, giant stature, and passion for Aotearoa New Zealand and physics. Webb’s own observations about drawing (and drawing out character) has scientific parallels with his subject here. ‘It is pure physics,’ he once wrote. ‘While being artists, we are scientists specialising in the nature of light and substance.’

Murray Webb’s images can be found in the Turnbull’s New Zealand Cartoon and Comics Archive, with most available online.