In Conversation with Cissy Serrao
‘The Art of Hawaiian Quilting’
In the fourth week of the Matters of Care: Museum futures in times of planetary precarity conference series, the Pitt Rivers Museum's Marenka Thomspon-Odlum talked with Cissy Serrao, founder of Poakalani & Company, Hawai’i and a group of quilters. Cissy and her family have been creating Hawaiian quilts for many generations. In this heartwarming conversation with Jeremy Uden (Head of Conservation at the Pitt Rivers Museum) and Misa Tamura (Senior Conservator on the Talking Threads textile research project at the Pitt Rivers Museum), they shared their thoughts with us on the cultural significance and symbolism of quilting in Hawaiian culture, why the patterns and tradition are so important to keep alive, and how she teaches this exciting and beautiful art.
Watch the recording of this session here.