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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, May 28, 2004

Canoe part of national exhibit

By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer

After 15 years, a Hawaiian koa canoe that was rough cut by master canoe builder Wright Bowman Jr. on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., will be headed back to the nation's Capitol to become a living exhibit in the new Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian set to open in September.

Bowman died in 1997 before he could finish the 18-foot-long fishing canoe, but Jason Tabata, who worked with Bowman for more than 20 years, and Dennis Lai Hipp, an apprentice to Tabata, have nearly completed the canoe. The canoe — called Au Hou, or New Era — will be blessed during a ceremony tomorrow for those who worked on the vessel and invited guests.

Following the blessing, the canoe will be shipped to the West Coast next week and on to Washington.

Billy Richards, president of the Friends of Hokule'a and Hawai'iloa, said the exhibit will be a great opportunity to expose an estimated 4 million people a year to a bit of Native Hawaiian culture.

The grand opening Sept. 21 will include a "Native Nations" procession, a six-day festival, exhibitions and visitor information at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

"During the opening, 1,200 native nations will be represented in a great procession," Richards said. "... We were really fortunate to be asked to participate."

Situated directly in front of the U.S. Capitol on the National Mall, the 250,000-square-foot, $199 million museum will be home to one of the largest and most diverse collections of Indian art and artifacts in the world.

Bowman started work on the canoe in 1989, part of Hawai'i's exhibits at the Festival of American Folklife. It was later shipped to Hawai'i.

Tabata and Lai Hipp worked for about eight months to bring it near completion. Today the canoe is being prepared for its trip at a pier off Sand Island Road.

The men will remain with the canoe in Washington for a month as they complete work on the vessel and talk with visitors. The canoe was donated for the project by Bowman's widow, Sharon.

Thomas Sweeney, public affairs director for the museum, said the museum was founded by Congress in 1989 with legislation co-sponsored by U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye and represents cultures from the Arctic Circle to the tip of South America.

"We are an institution of living contemporary native cultures," Sweeney said. "That is why we are including Native Hawaiians in this."

The canoe will be placed in the 120-foot domed area at the entrance to the museum.

Financing for the project was provided by the Smithsonian, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and First Hawaiian Bank, with support from Matson Navigation Co., Kekua Foundation and Sause Bros. Ocean Towing Co.

Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2431.