The man responsible for designing the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. is in Hawaii for a transportation of historic proportions at the Bishop Museum. In 1889 The Bishop Museum was built by Charles Reed Bishop for his beloved wife Ke Ali'i Bernice Pauahi. Over 100 years later, the museum's Hawaiian Hall is undergoing renovations that will bring the past to the present. The entire Hall has been refinished including cleaning off of old paint and varnish to expose deep, rich colors and details previously hidden. New exhibits will allow for a more interactive experience where Hawaiian language, both written and spoken, will pervade the space including oil and mele.

Unlike the past, the exhibits in this hale are now revealing our stories from a Hawaiian perspective and Hawaiian ways of being and living.

For Appelbaum, the real test is to keep the essence of the hall true to the Hawaiians who discovered Hawaii. This will serve as a critical resource of Hawaiian history and stories of our Hawaiian people and everyone should come to see and learn.

The restoration of Hawaiian Hall is expected to open to the public in Summer 2009.

---