Lyman Museum to Host Special Photography Exhibit in 2013
The tourism boom of the 1960s was one of the many subjects Hilo photographer John Howard Pierce recorded in pictures. His collection of photographs taken between 1950 and 1979 will be the subject of a Lyman Museum special exhibit opening in July.
HILO, Hawai`i (February 11, 2013) — The John Howard Pierce Photograph Collection will be the subject of a Lyman Museum special exhibit opening July 26, 2013, and running through January 11, 2014.
John Howard Pierce, whose photography will be the subject of a Lyman Museum exhibit opening in July, is shown in the mirror’s reflection. He took this picture of an unidentified park ranger and tour guide, possibly Abel Nahale, in 1969.
Pierce, who worked for the Hawaii Tribune-Herald from 1951 to 1968, became the curator of the Lyman Museum upon his retirement. He was an avid photographer, taking thousands of photographs of Hawai‘i Island from the time he arrived in 1950 until his death in 1979. The importance of the collection lies in the period it covers: those years before and after statehood, Hilo’s economic development and tourism, and a burgeoning Hawaiian renaissance. Photographs of volcanic eruptions from this collection were also featured in a recent Museum exhibit, “Hawai‘i Volcanoes: 1880s to Present.”
Lyman Museum Archivist Michelle Bulos is leading an ongoing project to identify the subjects of the late photographer’s expansive collection. The exhibit will offer a unique chance for local visitors to recognize a piece of their past, and for first-time and seasoned travelers to view Hawai‘i through a historical lens.
The nationally accredited and Smithsonian-affiliated Lyman Museum is located at 276 Haili Street in Hilo and open 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Admission and further details: (808) 935-5021 or www.lymanmuseum.org.
Photo credits: Courtesy of Lyman Museum Archives
