Celebration of Hawaii 2026

A Dream of a Memory of the Song of the Hawaiian Honeyeaters

48” x 48”

acrylic on canvas

The entire family of birds from Mohoidae is now extinct including the ʻōʻō and kioea.

These birds were thought to be descended from pacific honeyeaters, but recent DNA analysis indicated they are actually evolved from waxwings in North America, making them one of only a few species to arrive in Hawaiʻi from the east.

In the process of making A Dream of a Memory of the Song of the Hawaiian Honeyeaters I actually drew them many times, but kept covering them over. I realized how this was symbolic of the ways they are still present in our history and memory.

My intention is to offer a not an image of the birds that are no longer with us, nor a scientific dissection into parts, but a joyous, if brokenhearted, tribute to these beautiful birds, as if you could still glimpse them somewhere in the forest of memory.

Available from Viewpoints Gallery, Makawao, Maui.

This was written entirely by Sarah Taylor Ko without the aid of any sort of AI. NO AI TRAINING: without in any way limiting the author’s exclusive rights under copyright, any use of this blog to train generative intelligence (AI) technologies or generate text is expressly prohibited.