[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 195 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 195

 Recognizing Bishop Museum, the Nation's premier showcase for Hawaiian 
culture and history, on the occasions of its 120th anniversary and the 
       restoration and renovation of its historic Hawaiian Hall.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 19, 2009

 Mr. Inouye submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                     the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Recognizing Bishop Museum, the Nation's premier showcase for Hawaiian 
culture and history, on the occasions of its 120th anniversary and the 
       restoration and renovation of its historic Hawaiian Hall.

Whereas Bishop Museum was founded in 1889 in Honolulu, Hawai`i by Charles Reed 
        Bishop in memory of his beloved wife, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, 
        the great granddaughter of Kamehameha I, to house the personal legacies 
        and bequests of the royal Kamehameha and Kalakaua families;
Whereas the mission of Bishop Museum since its inception has been to study, 
        preserve, and tell the stories of the cultures and natural history of 
        Hawai`i and the Pacific;
Whereas the collections of Bishop Museum include more than 24,000,000 objects, 
        collectively the largest Hawai`i and Pacific area collection in the 
        world, which includes more than 1,200,000 cultural objects representing 
        Native Hawaiian, Pacific Island, and Hawai`i immigrant life, more than 
        125,000 historical publications (including many in the Hawaiian 
        language), more than 1,000,000 historical photographs, films, works of 
        art, audio recordings, and manuscripts, and more than 22,000,000 plant 
        and animal specimens;
Whereas a primary goal of Bishop Museum is to serve and represent the interests 
        of Native Hawaiians by advancing Native Hawaiian culture and education, 
        protecting the collections and increasing access to them, and 
        strengthening the museum's connections with the schools of Hawai`i;
Whereas the national significance of Bishop Museum's cultural collection lies in 
        the Native Hawaiian collection, which collectively represents the 
        largest public resource in the world documenting a way of life, and has 
        been a source of knowledge and inspiration for numerous visitors, 
        researchers, students, native craftsmen, teachers, and community and 
        spiritual leaders over the years, especially since the cultural revival, 
        which has been steadily growing and gaining in popularity;
Whereas more than 300,000 people visit Bishop Museum each year to learn about 
        Hawaiian culture and experience Hawaiian Hall;
Whereas the desire to see Hawaiian Hall and to learn about Hawaiian culture is 
        the primary reason 400,000 visitors each year give for visiting Bishop 
        Museum;
Whereas Hawaiian Hall is the Nation's only showcase of its size, proportion, 
        design, and historic context that is devoted to the magnificent legacy 
        of Hawai`i's kings and queens, and the legacies of its Native Hawaiian 
        people of all walks of life and ages;
Whereas Hawaiian Hall, constructed between 1889 and 1903 and 1 of 3 
        interconnected structures known as the Hawaiian Hall Complex, is 
        considered a masterpiece of late Victorian museum design with its 
        Kamehameha blue stone exterior quarried on site and extensive use of 
        native koa wood, and is one of the few examples of Romanesque 
        Richardsonian style museum buildings to have survived essentially 
        unchanged;
Whereas Hawaiian Hall, designed by noted Hawai`i architects C.B. Ripley and C.W. 
        Dickey in 1898, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places 
        in 1982, based on its unique combination of architectural, cultural, 
        scientific, educational, and historical significance;
Whereas the restoration and renovation of Hawaiian Hall and its exhibits by 
        noted Hawai`i architect Glenn Mason and noted national and international 
        museum exhibit designer Ralph Appelbaum are integral to the museum's 
        ability to fulfill its mission and achieve its primary goal of serving 
        and representing the interests of Native Hawaiians;
Whereas the restoration and renovation of Hawaiian Hall, begun in 2005, included 
        the building of a new gathering place in an enclosed, glass walled 
        atrium, improved access to the hall through the installation of an 
        elevator in the new atrium to all 3 floors of the hall and other 
        buildings in the Hawaiian Hall Complex, improved collection preservation 
        through the installation of new, state-of-the-art environmental 
        controls, lighting, security, and fire suppression systems, and restored 
        original woodwork and metalwork;
Whereas the restoration and renovation of the hall's exhibits bring multiple 
        voices and a Native Hawaiian perspective to bear on Bishop Museum's 
        treasures, by conveying the essential values, beliefs, complexity, and 
        achievements of Hawaiian culture through exquisite and fragile artifacts 
        in a setting that emphasizes their ``mana'' (power and essence) and the 
        place in which they were created;
Whereas the new exhibit incorporates contemporary Native Hawaiian artwork 
        illustrating traditional stories, legends, and practices, and 
        contemporary Native Hawaiian voices interpreting the practices and 
        traditions through multiple video presentations;
Whereas the new exhibit features more than 2,000 objects and images from the 
        museum's collections on the open floor, mezzanines, and the center 
        space, conceptually organized to represent 3 traditional realms or 
        ``wao'' of the Hawaiian world--Kai Akea, the expansive sea from which 
        gods and people came, Wao Kanaka, the realm of people, and Wao Lani, the 
        realm of gods and the ``ali`i'' (chiefs) who descended from them;
Whereas the new exhibit's ending display celebrates the strength, glory, and 
        achievements of Native Hawaiians with a large 40-panel mural titled 
        ``Ho`ohuli, To Cause An Overturning, A Change'', made by students of 
        Native Hawaiian charter schools in collaboration with Native Hawaiian 
        artists and other students, and interpreted by Native Hawaiian artists 
        and teachers in a video presentation; and
Whereas the people of the United States wish to convey their sincerest 
        appreciation to Bishop Museum for its service and devotion: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) recognizes the reopening of historic Hawaiian Hall on 
        the 120th anniversary of the founding of Bishop Museum in 
        Honolulu, Hawai`i; and
            (2) on the occasions of the reopening and anniversary of 
        the museum, honors and praises Bishop Museum for its work to 
        ensure the preservation, study, education, and appreciation of 
        Native Hawaiian culture and history.
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