Carol Anne Dickson

Business Researcher, Clothing Expert, Thrill Seeker

by Karla Brown
External Affairs and University Relations student writer

News@UH January 10, 2005

When it comes to conducting business research, Carol Anne Dickson is more than willing to take on the task.For her latest project, the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa professor is guest curator for the Honolulu Academy of Arts' exhibit Jewelry of Hawai‘i: Art and Artifice in Paradise.

The exhibit focuses on the Hawai‘i jewelry industry from the late 1800s through the end of the 20th century. The exhibition is open through Feb. 13, 2005.

In 1980, Dickson moved to Hawai‘i from her native North Carolina. She never lost her accent but readily adapted to the tropical weather, which is conducive for her favored mode of transportation -- moped. Dickson, an associate professor of textiles and clothing in the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, has come to appreciate other aspects of Hawai‘i during her 23 years at UH, especially the islands' cultural diversity.

Drawing on her PhD in textiles and clothing and graduate work in business and history, Dickson has written on topics such as the American garment pattern industry, 1850-1976. Her 2001 Honolulu Magazine article “History of Retail in Hawai‘i” traced Hawai‘i’s retail history from the days of bartering to present time.

“Retailing has a very rich history in Hawai‘i,” Dickson says. "Retailing remains the sector that contributes the most to Hawai‘i state revenues. It is the sector of the economy that hires the most employees,” she adds.

When she began examining the history of the state's jewelry industry, she realized that “this is not just a business like selling widgets—this is an art form.” Jewelers are artists, and they are selling their art, she explains. "In Hawai‘i, jewelry design is unique and finely developed with designs that reflect the culture and environment that is Hawai‘i.”

A primary influence on jewelry here comes from Asian and Oceanic cultures. “Hawai‘i’s relative geographic isolation, lack of metals and lack of precious or semi-precious gemstones contributed substantially to the manner in which its articles of adornment, particularly jewelry, developed,” she says. “Each wave of immigrants and visitors, western and Asian, intertwined its arts with the arts of Hawaiians and each other.”

Dickson refuses to take credit for the exhibition. “I did not create the beauty that is the jewelry, and I did not create the beauty that is the installation of that exhibit at the academy," she says. “All I did was recognize good art and conduct the research that looked at the businesses and the artists who produced the jewelry art. That’s what I enjoy doing.”

She credits Steve Little, Honolulu Academy of Arts director, and George Ellis, former director, with the vision for Jewelry of Hawai‘i. "They had the foresight to know that this kind of an exhibit would focus on a Hawai‘i art and would draw people to the academy,” she says.

Other recent activities include a gallery talk titled “Adornment: Pacific Visions” at the Mission Houses Museum to accompany the exhibit Body Language: Adornment and Identity in the Pacific, which runs until Feb. 5. Dickson focused on aspects of jewelry production and development in the Pacific Islands, as well as how immigrants and visitors have incorporated their arts with those of indigenous Pacific peoples.

“I also discussed and demonstrated, through the objects being exhibited, the ways in which the wearing of jewelry reflects the passage of life events and social status, and how the creativity in adornment is often tied to changing cultural notion of beauty,” she says.

And when she isn't pursuing business histories and other academic interests, Dickson is a bit of a thrill seeker at heart. Her list of adventures includes bungee jumping and, most recently, skate boarding. She says of her experience, “It was okay, but I fell down a lot and got all skinned-up.”

What’s next on her list? Hang gliding.