honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, April 20, 2008

HAWAIIAN ART
Lifelong achievers

By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Lauhala weaver Elizabeth Lee, of Kona, creates a hat.

Bishop Museum photo

spacer spacer

'MAMO AWARDS 2008: CELEBRATING OUR MASTERS'

Through Sept. 7

Bishop Museum

847-3511, www.bishopmuseum.org

Maoli Arts Month: www.maoliartsmonth.org

spacer spacer
Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

David Parker

spacer spacer
Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Elizabeth Lee’s lauhala work. She learned the art as a child to provide barter goods for her family.

spacer spacer

The sculptor, lauhala weaver and two painters in a new Bishop Museum exhibit were selected because they've not only mastered their crafts, but also helped keep them alive and move them forward.

Together, they reflect the wide spectrum of the Hawaiian visual arts community, weaving intricate lauhala hats; sculpting with wood, stone and bone; and painting portraits of the ali'i along with very contemporary work.

"Despite their differences, in mediums, they're all bringing back into our consciousness the works and faces of our ancestors," said Noelle Kahanu, Bishop Museum's community coordinator for the "MAMo Awards 2008: Celebrating our Masters."

The exhibition in the J.M. Long Gallery features pieces from lauhala weaver Elizabeth Lee of Kona, painter David Parker of O'ahu, sculptor Hanale Hopfe of Wai'anae and painter and arts organizer Al Lagunero of Maui.

The exhibit is a prelude to the third annual Maoli Arts Month, celebrating Native Hawaiian art, artists and cultural practitioners. The museum will kick off the month with a free public reception and MAMo awards ceremony from 6 to 9 p.m. on May 1.

The awards were created three years ago. As artists worked to organize a native Hawaiian market for contemporary artists, they realized they first needed to celebrate those who had spent decades perfecting and perpetuating their crafts.

"We begin by acknowledging our foundation," Kahanu said.

Several MAMo events are planned at other venues throughout May:

  • On May 2, the First Friday Gallery Walk through Chinatown will feature work from more than 20 native Hawaiian artists.

  • May 3-4, Bishop Museum will host a Native Hawaiian Arts Market and Keiki Arts Festival for a reduced $3 admission.

    More than 40 visual artists will be featured at the market, which will include collectible featherwork, silk scarves, carved images, decorated gourds, weaponry and weaving. Meanwhile, keiki and their families can create artwork of their own, listen to Hawaiian storytelling and meet cultural practitioners.

  • On May 16, the Second Annual MAMo Wearable Art show, a fundraiser, will showcase art Hawaiians wear for ceremonial rituals, cultural practices and adornments while incorporating performing art for an evening of entertainment. Tickets are $250. Call Jonie Williams at 226-7188 for more information.

  • The Outrigger Waikiki will host demonstrations of traditional Hawaiian arts on Wednesdays in May from 10 a.m. to noon.

  • MAMo Keauhou Art Market will close out the month at the Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort in Kona.

    Reach Treena Shapiro at tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.

    • • •