Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 7, Number 4, 1 ʻApelila 1990 — New book on Kilauea is extraordinary [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

New book on Kilauea is extraordinary

By Ann L. Moore "Kilauea, The Newest Land On Earth" is a rari ty; a book that is visually exciting, profound but never pompous. "Kilauea" contains a series of extraordinary full color photographs of recent volcanic eruptions and the creation of new lands on the Big Island. The photographer, Dorien Weisel, used his eamera and film the way Michelangelo used a palette and brush to capture the original Creation. These are not photographs that could be duplicated by just any photographer because Weisel has a special-use permit from the authorities at the Volcanoes National Park whieh allowed him aecess to the eruption sites. That permit, Weisel's unfailing eye for the lava's creative magnificence, and what must verge on foolhardy courage give readers an unforgettable vision of Pele's domain that ean be held in the hands and revisited again and again. In the text, co-author Christina Heliker pulls the reader into a time warp and takes them from the earth's beginnings, throughearly writtenaccounts and into the present with crisp, informative prose. There are sharp, to-the-point references aeeompanying eaeh picture. The archives were searched by the author and old paintings of the volcano found. Additionally, 1920s to 1960s photographs depict pioneer visitors to Kilauea and the Volcano House. Those pho tos were combined with several full color graphics showing just how a volcano works; from its "hot spot" deep below the earth's mantle to the point of eruption. The large-format book captures everything from the initial, spectacular lava fountains that

burst from the Pu'u 'O'o vent to the massive outpourings from the Kupaianaha lava pond, to the destruction done by the f!ows and finally to the new land that is being created. Weisel eame to the island of Hawai'i 10 years ago, drawn by the eruptions at Pu'u 'O'o. He and his family moved to a home near the summit of Kilauea in 1984. He is a noted free lanee photographer who has shown his work in Honolulu and at the Volcano Arts Center. Many of his photographs were selected for the Smithsonian lnstitute exhibit "Inside Active Volcanoes." The exhibition is now at the Bishop Museum. From Hawai'i it will tour several of the world's major museums. The straightforward, easy-reading narrative by Heliker provides fascinating information. She manages to cram a lot of information into eaeh phrase without ever becoming "bookish" or boring. Heliker is a geologist with the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. She became a vulcanologist when she left a job studying glaciers and joined the U.S. Geological Survey scientists at Mount St. Helens following its eruption in 1980. She moved to Hawai'i in 1984 and has been monitoring the Pu'u 'O'o eruption ever since. The book is available at the Bishop Museum's Shop Pacifica and atotherbookoutletsfor $12.95, a price this reviewer finds extremely reasonable considering what you get. The Bishop Museum members' discount applies for purchases made at Shop Pacifica whieh ean be visited without paying the museum entrance fee. The shop is at the main entrance of Bishop Museum, 1525 Bernice St. The mailing address is P.O. Box 19000. Honolulu, Hawai'i,

96817-0916. "Kilauea The Newest Land On Earth" is a 1990 Bishop Museum Special Publication, Number 92, by Bishop Museum Press.

A vision of the goddess Pele seems to appear in this two-story photo murai at the entrance to Bishop Museum's new exhibit on volcanoes.

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