Of all the things held safe at Bishop Museum and away from the burning gaze of the public, there's a notable exception. Bishop Museum moai
isn't the real dealThat's this multi-ton stone "moai" or Easter Island head carving out in the middle of the Great Lawn. It holds up daily under the sun, the rain and the caresses of tourists wanting to be photographed next to it.
What a way to treat a sacred artifact hundreds of years old! Except that it's not -- neither an artifact nor old.
It's a replica -- carved out of what might be basalt -- for the 1970 Osaka World's Fair. This was the fair that featured a large Hawaii pavilion. When the fair was over, the government of Japan gifted the moai to Bishop Museum.
It used to have white-painted pupils, like the Rapa Nui moais. But unlike the Rapa Nui megaliths, this is just a head. Archaeologist Thor Heyerdahl discovered that the Easter Island statues actually extend down into the ground for dozens of feet.
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Winning playwrights
Jesse Palmer, Richard Kuhlman and Alan Sutterfield are the winners of a playwriting contest by Kumu Kahua Theatre and the University of Hawaii at Manoa Theatre Department.Palmer of Laie is the winner of a $200 resident prize for his comic one-act "A Midterm's Night Dream." Kuhlman of Hollywood, Calif., won the $400 Pacific/Rim prize for "The Seven Colored Flower." Sutterfield received the $500 Hawaii Prize for his historical comedy "King Kalakaua's Poker Game."
A reading of the winners' works will be announced at the beginning of the 2001-2002 season.
Academy seeks docents
The Honolulu Academy of Arts is offering a Docent Training Course for Japanese language speakers this summer.Applications are being accepted with interviews scheduled later this month and early July. Dates for course training will be set based on availability of applicants.
Applicants must speak fluent English and Japanese. After graduating from the training, docents are expected to help the academy with tours.
Applicants should have an interest in art and culture and a willingness to share what they learn through guided tours with adults and children.
For an application, call Betsy Robb in the Education Department at 532-3666.
Summer beauty update
NARS national makeup artist Lori Taylor be at Neiman Marcus this week to help women get a new look for summer.Taylor will share tips and techniques from noon to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday by appointment.
Taylor was a beauty editor for a Web site created for women in their 20s. She has also worked on music videos and with photographer Richard Avedon for Levi's.
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