Department Exhibits for 2008
Asia Collection
South Asian Dance: Bodies in Motion
04/08
The new exhibit in the Asia Collection titled "South Asian Dance: Bodies in Motion," was designed in conjunction with the UHM Center for South Asian Studies' 25th Annual Spring Symposium on "The Body in South Asian Contexts," April 10-11, 2008. The Symposium will be held at the Center for Korean Studies and is free and open to the public. The exhibit coordinators are Linda Laurence and Monica Ghosh. Saris and ornaments in the exhibit are on loan to the library from Sonja Sironen, MA student in the Theater and Dance Department
Kim Chong-ho, Father of Korean Cartography and his "Complete Map of the Great East"
12/07 - 01/08
In 1861 the enigmatic Korean cartographer Kim Chong-ho produced a map of his country that until his day and for many years afterward was the most accurate, detailed, and shall we say "user friendly" map of Korea ever produced. Both Kim and his map remain today the foci of scholarly attention and Korean national pride.
This display sought to introduce both Kim Chong-ho the figure and the great map he produced: Taedong yojido, or "Complete Map of the Great East". In a series of three display cases were presented Kim Chong-ho the man, his unique and groundbreaking map, and finally the legacy that Kim left behind. Included in the final case are Hamilton library resources, including maps, books, and even electronic resources, concerning Kim and his map.
This exhibit was the first collaboration between the Hamilton Library's Asia Collection and the Map Collection. One of the exhibit's highlights is 1:5 scale reproduction of the map which was accomplished by scanning each of the map's 22 individual elongated sheets, stitching them together digitally, and printing the resulting image out using the library's newly acquired map scanner and printer.
The exhibit runs from December 1, 2007 to January 31, 2008.
Chinese Picture Story Book Exhibit
02/08
Lian Huan Hua literally means "linked serial pictures." They are pocket sized picture-story books first published by a Shanghai publisher in the 1920s. Lian huan hua is also commonly known as Xiao ren shu, children's book for their simplicity and heraldic subjects. They combined pictures with text. Unlike the western comic books, the text is usually placed either at the bottom or on the right side of the picture, rather than issuing from the characters' mouth in balloons.
The origin of lian huan hua in China is hard to trace. However, there are two recognized forerunners of this popular medium, the traditional drawings in Chinese classical literature or popular romantic novels and Chinese New Year's pictures (nian hua). Many story books of the Song (A.D. 960-1279) and the Yuan (A.D. 1279-1368) dynasties often had illustrations at the top of each page, including The Water Margin (Shui hu zhuan) and Romance of the Three Kingdoms (San guo zhi). During the Ming (A.D. 1368-1644) and the Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, popular romantic novels, such as The Dream of the Red Chamber (Hong lou meng) and The Romance of the Western Chamber (Xi xiang ji), often included portraits of the main characters at the beginning of the novels and sometimes at the start of each chapter. Traditional Chinese New Year's pictures are often colorful prints of stories of legendary heroes and episodes of operas. Tales such as Twenty-Four Legends of Filial Piety (Er shi si xiao) is one of the favorite subjects of New Year's pictures.
In the early 1920s, lian huan hua first appeared mainly as adaptations of Jingju (Peking Opera) and Chinese literary classics. The pictures were created mostly in line drawings, sketches, and oil-wash painting. After the People's Republic of China (PRC) was founded in 1949, lain huan hua became an extremely popular art form and was used to popularize new government policies and regulations. From 1951 to 1956, more than 10,000 titles, and approximately 26 billion copies were published in China.
The popularity of lian huan hua diminished in 1966 at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution (1966 to 1976); however, the publication was revived by Premier Zhou Enlai in the early 1970s with heroic stories of the time that were used as a propaganda tool. From the late 1970s to mid-1980s, lian huan hua became an important source of education and entertainment for children and adults alike. With a wide range of other reading materials appearing in China during the 1990s, lian huan hua lost its glamour. Since 2000, lian huan hua started appearing in shops and has become hot collectible items in China today.
The Hamilton Library's China collection has collected more than 150 titles of lian huan hua that were published mostly during the Cultural Revolution, particularly between 1971-1976, when the publication of lian huan hua was rare and difficult at that time.
For the exhibit, the China Specialist Librarian has selected some representative titles and placed them in the display cases on the 4th floor of the Asia Collection
Visti Hamlition Library's Digitial Collection to view more than 150 colorful bookcovers.
Science and Technology
Government Documents
Special Collections
Albert Wendt Exhibit
03/08
Special Collections is pleased to announce the exhibition of a set of paintings by Samoan novelist, poet, and essayist Albert Wendt. One of Oceania's single most important (and prolific) writers and scholars, Wendt is also an accomplished visual artist. Over the course of the last three years, during which time he has served as Citizen's Chair in the UH-Manoa Department of English, he has produced a substantial body of artwork. On exhibit through the end of May in the Special Collections reading room are ten of these paintings, including selections from the "Koolau" and "Pele" series, as well as other Hawaii- and Pacific-themed works.
Hawaiian Invaders
03/08
Exhibits on invasive species in Hawaii.
Hawaii: One Hundred Years Ago
01/08
This exhibit features publications from 1907 including pa'u riders in a floral parade, a souvenir booklet from the Congressional party visit to the Islands, a report on Kalaupapa, "reclamation" of Waikiki, and Henry Cabot Lodge's book, "Hawaii."
