Science through Art: Birds of a Feather Working Together
with Molly Hagemann, Invertebrate Zoology collections manager and Laurie Sumiye, artist

Recorded on Thursday, September 19, 2019 in Atherton Halau

The Natural History collections at #BishopMuseum are an invaluable resource for artists who interpret scientific specimens differently than scientists do. Hear from the Museum’s Molly Hagemann and artist Laurie Sumiye about how a mutual love of birds developed into a friendship and a professional collaboration involving the Museum’s Avian Collection. Laurie created molds from the albatross eggs in the Museum collections and then fashioned resin eggs filled with marine debris to illustrate the impact of plastic on North Pacific albatross populations. This art installation, Laysan 1902, is now on display in the Science Adventure Center. The next collaborative project is a documentary film on the palila, a critically endangered honeycreeper. These stories increase public awareness and help preserve Hawaiʻi’s dwindling biodiversity.

This program is coordinated by the Bishop Museum Education Department to celebrate the extraordinary history, culture, and environment of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific.