Victoria Hartmann
Victoria Hartmann, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Occupation: Executive Director of the Erotic Heritage Museum in Las Vegas, Sexuality Scholar studying Pornography and Paraphilias
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
The Sex in My Business: Sex is the central focus of my work, both for the museum and in my research! The museum's mission is to preserve erotic art, artifacts, and film — both films and documentaries that are/have been commercially available and those that are privately made.
A Typical Day: I get up around 6 a.m. and check my emails — I get a lot of them. In addition, because our corporate business office is located in Michigan, I sometimes have to start going through emails as early as 5 a.m.! I try to get to the gym most mornings but thanks to all the work I’m doing, that isn't always possible. Regardless, I usually get into the museum around nine and start my daily activities, which could range from paperwork to archiving to contract negotiations and oversight of the different departments. Sometimes it's overseeing a study or two we conduct at the museum. It's never a boring day.
The Best Part: My job mixes several different things that I love: art, business, preservation, entertainment, and academia. My work at the museum exposes me to many aspects of sexuality — historical, modern, biological, neurological, anthropological… the list goes on and on. Plus, we get to educate the public in a really fun way. I also think that one of the best parts of this line of work is the other sexuality scholars I meet. They’re some of the wisest, most inspiring people, and through my job, I have the good fortune to work with them. They know the stigma attached to working in this field, and in them I find the closest of cohorts. They are as dedicated to this career as I am.
The Worst Part: Perhaps because of how people on the outside perceive Las Vegas, many guests come into the museum expecting something touristy without a lot of depth, or they come in expecting to see live sex shows. The biggest complaint we get from visitors is that there’s too much to read (but of course there is; it's a museum!). Because we study and preserve sexual items and history, people often think our work is on the level of a lewd, kitschy joke. Every so often, people come in and ask the front desk staff why we’re even here, and they tell us that everyone already knows about sex and we’re wasting time. These kinds of things are hurtful to hear of course, but those of us who work here are all passionate and dedicated, so we just smile, and politely explain what we do.
How I Got Here: As far back as I can remember, I’ve been fascinated by sexuality, and was fortunate enough to grow up in Germany with a mother who had a wonderfully open way of parenting. Thankfully, I never felt shame as I matured — she taught me that no matter what I do or how I express myself, that I’m okay. In college, one of my first classes was psychology, and it was there that I stumbled upon unusual sexual behavior. I was hooked, and made my focus on human sexuality.
I came to the museum as an intern, but once I had earned both of my doctorates, I left academia. I went to work for my current boss, Harry Mohney (whom I met during my internship), managing his in-club cam system and one of his clubs. I was miserable — not because of him, but because I didn't feel at home in that world. I nearly left and went back to school again, but then the museum changed hands and he took control of it because it was housed in a building he owns. He asked me what I thought we should do with it, and a week or so later I got a call from the corporate offices that he had appointed me as director. I was stunned but said yes. I gave up the clubs and came to the museum full time. It’s been going almost a decade and it's always a labor of love and I’m happy we were able to monetize the museum while still maintaining our integrity and dedication to outreach and education.
What Society Thinks: Sexuality has been a favorite target for those who would wish to silence and control people. As human beings, we must always be vigilant about not letting this happen. We do better as a species when we accept each other’s sexual expression because in the end, we are all afraid of being “found out.” Our sexuality is the greatest equalizer in this way, so let's honor each other’s differences. Other than my father, who passed away three years ago, the rest of my family and friends have been super supportive of both my work and the museum. I even met my amazing husband there. My children (who are now adults) also support what I do. I sometimes get approached by men when I am in my museum gear outside of the building in a somewhat salacious way, but when I respond back with the museum’s mission and what we do, I generally get an “Oh wow, that's actually cool. I should come and see it.”
The coldest reception to our work has been from the museum world. We once attended an American Alliance of Museums (AAM) conference and the attendees largely avoided us, looking down their noses at us, which was the most disheartening experience we have had. We were like giddy school children attending our first class outing, and the “cool kids” ostracized us. This reaction was a big letdown and we haven't been back. Over the years that I’ve been at the museum I think we have had roughly three people come in and scream at us that we are the Antichrist (???) and a couple of co-workers in the business office make fun of us for being “nerds,” but those things don't bother us much. We like being nerds.
When I’m Not at Work: My husband and I got our first puppy together some months ago, and we love to find things to do with her. We decided not to have children together, so this is the closest we’ll likely get and it's been a fun adventure. Other than that, I like to find a balance between time alone (I do a lot of thinking) and spending time with the people we care about. My husband and I are both big on nurturing the relationships we value. I also play drums and am working on getting my pilot’s license, so I fit those two hobbies in when I can.
