The streets of Wailuku will encounter Maui artist Michael Takemoto’s “A Murder of ʻAlalā" this Tuesday, March 17 in the latest installment of SMALL TOWN * BIG ART; the town’s creative placemaking pilot project funded through an “Our Town” grant by the National Endowment of the Arts. Members of the public are welcome and encouraged to participate in this public artwork at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, March 17 + Wednesday, March 18 + Thursday, March 19, weather permitting.  
 
Many birds live alone, but crows live in a group called a murder. ʻAlalā, or Hawaiian crows, are sacred in Hawaiian culture and regarded as ʻaumākua or family spiritual guardians. 
 
Takemoto, a visual artist, Associate Professor, Humanities Department Chair and Visual Arts Program Coordinator at University of Hawaiʻi Maui College, has created a collection of stencils that will be handed out to students and community members along with charcoal powder to install hundreds of crow silhouettes along the sidewalks of Market Street, at Kīpuka Square, at the MAPA buildings at the Promenade and Black Box Theater and at fellow SMALL TOWN * BIG ART artist Sean Baba's gallery Fresh Island Art. 
 
Selected in collaboration with Sissy Lake-Farm, Director of Hale Hōʻikeʻike at The Bailey House Museum/ Maui Historical Society, the ‘ōlelo no‘eau (Hawaiian proverb) that inspired Takemoto is “Hoʻolaukanaka i ka leo o nā manu, (the voices of birds give the place a feeling of being inhabited). 
 
“The concept is to cover exterior walls and public spaces with charcoal images of the ʻalalā, or Hawaiian crow, the most endangered corvid species in the world,” shares Takemoto, “Since the images will be in charcoal, they will slowly fade away with time and exposure to the weather. The piece is a metaphor to the plight of the ʻalalā, as their numbers have been decimated through the loss of their natural habitation and the incursion of non-native species. I feel this project will help to bring more knowledge and awareness about Maui Nuiʻs fragile environment and ecological system.”
 
According to the ʻAlalā Project, ʻalalā is "also a term for a style of chant used to further project ones voice, a messenger in battle who calls out a chief’s commands to his warriors and a cry of a baby. Their dark color represents unpredictable things. If an ʻAlalā was seen or heard upon entering a place, this was seen as a warning sign to not continue on. ʻAlalā are associated with ʻanāʻanā (Hawaiian dark magic).”
 
In addition to creating your very own temporary ʻalalā artwork throughout the week, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART will host a pop-up performing arts component to “A Murder of ʻAlalā" on Wednesday, March 18 at 5:30 PM in Kīpuka Square. Join as a voice to share poetry, story excerpts or other works of the written word that share the many different views of ravens, crows, ʻalalā and more. You decide! Voices from Maui Academy of Performing Arts, Maui OnStage, University of Hawaiʻi Maui College and others will take to one of many soapboxes throughout the Square to share impromptu works. We hope you will, too! RSVP here.

Earlier today, public art collaborators Sissy Lake-Farm and Kelly McHugh-White presented SMALL TOWN * BIG ART to the 6th grade class of Iao School, explaining and sharing images of the public art program that they have spent the last 18-months formulating with fellow collaborator, Erin Wade. 

When asked "why is art important?" students offered profound responses that included, "it helps you share the feelings you don't have words for," "it lets you communicate with the people you love," and "it makes your creativity stronger."  Chicken skin feedback that let us all know what a treat we were in for today. 

Sissy went on to talk about ʻōlelo noʻeau, and why and how they are included in all ST*BA projects. "This is just one way that we can help to preserve and remember the history of Wailuku and to ensure that our story is being told for the next generation." 

Two ʻōlelo noʻeau were presented to the group, narrowed down from 9 that Sissy and Ben have been discussing over the course of several weeks: 

1. Kamaliʻi i ke ʻole i ka helu pō: Muku nei, Muku ka malama: Hilo nei, kau ka Hoaka. (Children who do not know the moon phases: Muku is here, Muku the moon; Hilo comes next, then Hoaka). The first part of a childʻs chant for learning the names of the moon phases. Also said of one who does not know the answer to a question or is ignorant. He is compared to a small child who has not learned the moon phases. 
2. Puʻupuʻu lei pali i ka ʻāʻī. (An imperfect lei, beautified by wearing). Even an imperfect lei looks beautiful when worn around the neck-- as beautiful as flowers and greenery on the slope of a hill. 

Sissy and Kelly then introduced the lovely husband and wife duo Ben and Eilish Volta, who are visiting Wailuku for 2 weeks from Philadelphia in order to gather stories, ideas and visuals for their SMALL TOWN * BIG ART piece, which will be installed in April 2020. "This weekend, we spent an afternoon exploring the Bailey House Museum and the surrounding gardens. Docent Lisa helped guide us through the complex history of the islands. We did not come to Maui with a formed idea of what we will create with students at Iao school. We were anticipating the biodiversity of the island, the clarity of the cosmos, and the pull of the full moon. Today we are spending most of the day drawing and searching for ways to bring our project into focus."

Ben and Eilish proceeded to hand out tracing paper with a sketch of each of the moon phases pre-drawn and asked students to fill in any phase of the moon of their choosing with anything they could think of. Botanical sketches from their day at Hale Hō‘ike‘ike at the Bailey House/ Maui Historical Society were offered to each table of students as a guide or starting point from which to create. 

With the invaluable support of Mike Rose, the school's ukulele teacher, a schedule has been carefully put together that allows every 6th grade student at Iao School the opportunity to work with the visiting artists this week. Outside of the school workshops, the team plans to meet with elders and community members to discuss the project and create additional drawings to be included In the mural. Ben and Eilish will take the drawings made by students and community members back to Philadelphia to scan and construct the collaborative artwork, which will be printed on mural cloth at their studio in and shipped to Wailuku to be  installed on a wall. Ben will return in April to install the mural cloth and paint parts of the mural with students and community members, along with partnering Wailuku artist Kirk Kurokawa.

Some photos from today's introductory workshop:

In the February 2019 SMALL TOWN * BIG ART project proposal by Maui Academy of Performing Arts (MAPA), Chief Operating Officer Carolyn Wright shares:
 
Theatre is essential to a thriving community. As a gathering place where ideas and possibilities mingle in an incubator of humanity’s potential, theatre nourishes the pressing need to belong to a greater good. In theatre we find empathy for our fellow travelers, discover compassion for the pain of life’s tribulations, and celebrate the triumphs of our irrepressible human spirit. Defining who we are, what we believe and what remains after we are gone, theatre changes our world from the inside out. It re-shapes our individual and collective lives by walking us into new worlds, into deeper understandings of self and others. Theatre challenges ingrained ideas, shares new visions, and allows us to rehearse the moral struggles of the world. Connecting people across age, race, and economic barriers, theatre builds a climate of tolerance, compassion, and a shared vision for a healthy community.
 
On Friday, February 7, 2020 (Wailuku First Friday!), MAPA will present its SMALL TOWN * BIG ART project “Birds of a Feather” free of charge for members of the public at the 2027 Main Street studio. Show times are at 6:15 PM and 7:30 PM.
 
An original musical set on Maui written by Kathy Collins with music by Marti Kluth, the show is performed by MAPA's troupe of professional performers: Kathy Collins, Logan Heller, Carlyn Leal, and Kiegan Otterson with live music performed by Gilbert Emata. The story follows Moa (the Hawaiian chicken), Pīkake (the peacock), and Manu’aipilau (the mynah) who struggle to accept and appreciate their differences. To their great surprise, they learn that they are actually more alike than not, and they ultimately discover that their community is stronger because of their diversity.
 
According to MAPA Assistant Artistic Director Hōkū Pavao Jones, the original intent of the organization’s ST*BA proposal was to engage local playwright Kathy Collins to tell a story inspired by Pele’s eruption on Hawaiʻi Island in 2018. “But then came the outcry of the Mauna,” she shares, “which made us think: maybe this wasn’t the story that WE needed to be telling from MAPA as we the people are finding our collective voice. Everyone, not just Hawaiians, were feeling the call. Maybe what was needed was a remembrance that we may all believe in different things. We all hear the call. We are all so alike in so many ways – but we tend to focus on differences!”
 
Hōkū goes on to tell a story about a fellow rally-goer that went to Mauna Kea wondering whether or not he was “worthy” to be there, but came to feel an incredible sense of belonging that disappeared as soon as he returned home. “It was so apparent to him how things were just different,” she shares, “that’s how the story came to be. We weren’t meaning to write it or tell it. But our core audience (children) should hear the story of what he was feeling without being told. This is what theater is all about; talking about what is not being said in a way that people can really hear.”
 
In this way, “Birds of a Feather” is inspired by ʻōlelo noʻeau E aloha kekahi i kekahi, or love one another.
 
“Wailuku is a gathering place, and has been for centuries,” continues Hōkū, “Kathy took a day to walk around Wailuku and pick the 4 birds for the play based on 4 people that she saw in Wailuku, and the cultures and aloha that they represent.”
 
Over the past 30 years, MAPA’s Educational Theatre Tours have been a “gateway” theatre experience for generations of Maui keiki. Often students’ first-ever exposure to live theatre, the tours feature original scripts written by local playwrights like Kathy Collins and Derek Nakagawa, and original music written and performed by Maui musicians. With professionally designed costumes, sets and props, the plays are performed by MAPA’s troupe of professional actors and give students a full theatrical experience. The scripts and production values promote artistic excellence as well as educational value and address relevant child issues like friendship, respect, integrity or bullying – with age-appropriate humor and clear and accessible story lines that offer life lessons.
  
We hope you will join us at 2027 Main Street on February 7 to meet the artists, learn about MAPA and SMALL TOWN * BIG ART and celebrate the triumphs of our irrepressible human spirit!

A beautiful turnout this morning for Au's Shaolin Arts Society Chinese New Year performance and the unveiling of Sean Baba's SMALL TOWN * BIG ART sculpture, “Chinese Take Out: Super Size." Congratulations to all of the artists!

Inspired by ʻōlelo noʻeau: O ke aloha ke kuleana o kahi malihini (love is the host in strange lands), Baba proposed sharing this work in response to our February 2019 call-to-artists, which called for quality, style, experience in creating communal or public art, significance to Wailuku and alignment with a pre-selected ʻōlelo noʻeau by Sissy Lake-Farm, Director of Hale Hōʻikeʻike. 

His piece is now on view on level 9 of the County Building at 200 S. High Street and will be "popping up" throughout town; transforming spaces and the way that we interact with each new sense of place. 

Viewings will be announced via the smalltownbig.org mailing list as well as facebook.com/smalltownbigart and Instagram handle @smalltownbigart.

​Please join us on the front lawn of the Maui County Building this Friday, January 31 for a sneak peek of Wailuku artist Sean Baba's SMALL TOWN * BIG ART sculpture, “Supersize Me.”
 
Part of Au's Shaolin Arts Society Chinese New Year performance, Baba will join the festivities to share his artwork. 
 
Developed as a public installation that once lived outside of Hale Hōʻikeʻike at the Bailey House/ Maui Historical Society on Main Street in Wailuku, Baba revived the piece over the course of the last year for the SMALL TOWN * BIG ART call to artists. Proposals called for quality, style, experience in creating communal or public art, significance to Wailuku and alignment with a pre-selected ʻōlelo noʻeau by Sissy Lake-Farm, Director of Hale Hōʻikeʻike.
 
“There are many aspects and cultures that make Maui, Local,” shares Baba, “A symbolic Icon of Hawaii and Wailuku is the Chinese to go container. It symbolizes memories and the mixture of cultures that have mixed and grown to become Hawaiʻi. When I created this, it was received beyond what it represented to me, and the diversity of who gravitated to it was overwhelming. I have been told that Wailuku needs an artwork that symbolizes art, culture and food and this to me has represented this to everyone who has seen it.”
 
A collaboration of the National Endowment of the Arts, County of Maui and Hale Hōʻikeʻike at the Bailey House/ Maui Historical Society, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART is a creative placemaking pilot project with a mission to develop Wailuku, Hawaiʻi as a public arts district that is focused on its distinctive sense of place, history and culture. The project is led by County of Maui Redevelopment Program Planner Erin Wade and Public Art Specialist Kelly McHugh-White, with guidance and support by Sissy Lake-Farm, Director of Hale Ho'ike'ike at The Bailey House Museum/ Maui Historical Society.
 
“Something that we keep hearing from the public is, ‘it’s working!’ ‘You’re getting people to share their own Wailuku stories with each other!’ ‘The art is bringing them together!’” says McHugh-White, “Each artist that we are collaborating with has uncovered their own unique Wailuku narrative by working directly with this growing network of arts enthusiasts and storytellers. The artwork is a catalyst for community building, historic preservation and an enhanced wonder for Wailuku.”
 
51 SMALL TOWN * BIG ART proposals were submitted in February 2019 through CaFÉ, a public, online call-for-artists management system run by Western States Arts Federation, and a review panel was created with a careful balance of community, historical, art and grant making expertise. Baba's was one of 13 projects that were selected to move into project development in order to sharpen timelines, budgets, opportunities for community engagement, project renderings and any additional resource management. To date, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART has executed public art collaborations with lightwork artist Andy Behrle of Kīhei, Canadian-born muralist Emmanuel Jarus, Wailuku-based E.H.A (Endemic Hawaii Artists), comprised of Kirk Kurokawa, Elmer Bio, Amanda Bowers and Noble Richardson, and award-winning sculptor Jessica Bodner, with an additional Día de los Muertos event in which the public made offerings – photos, food, flowers, etc. – for a communal shrine created at Kīpuka Square with Jackie Goring and Tamara Li. Countless community members have supported these projects with their manaʻo and hands-on participation, consistently remarking on the sense of community, inspiration and education that each experience has offered.
 
The January 31 sneak peek of Baba's sculpture will be followed by other public viewings, to be announced via the smalltownbig.org mailing list as well as facebook.com/smalltownbigart and Instagram handle @smalltownbigart.
 
The next SMALL TOWN * BIG ART unveiling will take place during the February 7 First Friday event, created by Maui Academy of Performing Arts. Stay tuned for details.

By Shelley Pellegrino

Jonathan loves reading. Always has. It seems only fitting that he decided to build some Little Free Libraries for his Eagle Scout Project. These libraries will provide a repository for people in the community to take a book and/or share a book.

“I want to do this project because I have always found joy in reading a good book. Ever since I was in elementary school, I have loved to read. With this project, I hope to spread my love for reading with others, especially those who might not have access to books on a regular basis.”

When he started thinking about where to place the libraries, Jonathan thought of the communities and places on Maui that had meaning to him. With the assistance of his mentor Lawrence Kauha'aha'a, he decided to place one in Wailuku Town near Īao Theatre (outside the Market Street Safety Office). Another will be housed outside Wailuku Hongwanji Mission Buddhist Temple, which is the sponsoring organization for his Boy Scout Troop. The third will be placed at Noho'ana Farm in Waikapū.

What started as a building project has evolved into a larger collaboration, with SMALL TOWN * BIG ART and his Little Free Libraries joining in an effort to build community through the arts. "SMALL TOWN * BIG ART is a 2018-2020 creative placemaking pilot project to help position Wailuku, Maui, Hawai‘i as a public arts district that is focused on its distinctive sense of place, history and culture." It is funded by a National Endowment of the Arts grant.

Jonathan and about 30 of his fellow Troop 40 scouts and adult leaders have built three Little Free Libraries over the past few days at Noho’ana Farm. Today he met with Maui-born artist Amanda Joy Bowers, who is part of SMALL TOWN * BIG ART and who has graciously offered to paint the libraries. And at First Friday later this week, his Little Free Library will be part of a larger unveiling of a 250-pound sculpture of a hīna’i (woven basket) created by SMALL TOWN * BIG ART artist Jessica Bodner, with whom he met yesterday.

It is inspiring to me how Jonathan’s project has brought together so many different aspects of our lives. The ‘ōlelo no’eau (Hawaiian proverb) on which the collaboration is based — “A 'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia” - No task is too big when done together by all — has embodied this community-building experience.

The last component of Jonathan’s Eagle Project is a BOOK DRIVE, which will be held at FIRST FRIDAY on Market Street. Some of the books will be used to kick start the libraries, and the remainder will be donated to the Maui United Way for distribution to its partner agencies. BOOKS FOR ALL AGES ARE WELCOME.

Please stop by Kīpuka Square (near 'Īao Theatre) on January 3, between 6 and 9 p.m. to check out Jonathan’s Little Free Library, see Jessica Bodner’s work of art, donate a book(s), and learn more about SMALL TOWN * BIG ART.

Here are some photos from these past few days of building. Please also consider following SMALL TOWN * BIG ART on FB or Instagram to read more about this collaboration and see what other amazing work has already been done for the Wailuku community.

Looking forward to seeing folks this Friday!

1/1/20 UPDATE: Happy New Year! Request Music on Market Street has offered to serve as a drop-off location for those who would like to donate books, but cannot make it to First Friday. They will be open this Thursday and Friday from 10-6 and welcome any new or gently used books you would like to contribute to Jonathan's book drive. HUGE MAHALO to Request Music, and Joe and Shannon Alueta for their kokua! What an incredible community we have on Maui. SMALL TOWN BIG ART

Developed over the course of the last year, award-winning sculptor Jessica Bodner first saw the SMALL TOWN * BIG ART call to artists in February 2019 while traveling in Ojai, California. The proposal called for quality, style, experience in creating communal or public art, significance to Wailuku and alignment with an ʻōlelo noʻeau that was pre-selected by Sissy Lake-Farm, Director of Hale Hōʻikeʻike at the Bailey House/ Maui Historical Society. “The very minute I saw the opportunity, I started working on an idea,” says Bodner, who is well known for woven steel forms reminiscent of archeological subject matter, “I have always been inspired by basket making traditions of Hawaii, so I began spending a lot of time at the Historical Society and put together my proposal.”
 
Bodner’s selected ʻōlelo noʻeau 'A 'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia - No task is too big when done together by all was paired with a plan to hand sculpt a six-to-eight foot work from new and reclaimed steel, woven and welded to create a dramatic oversized version of a hīna’i which would serve “as a reminder and memory of the Native Hawaiians tie to the land and sea and one of the few fishing methods that women and children were allowed to participate in,” according to the artist’s proposal. 
 
SMALL TOWN * BIG ART panelists were “absolutely stunned” by the artist’s work, proposal and experience in creating public artwork, according to Project Manager Kelly McHugh-White. “Having created over 30 public art installations in her 20-year career as a professional artist, Jessica is incredibly sensitive to art’s ability to build and enhance a sense of place; art that goes beyond physical attributes to tell a story through the eye of the beholder and to create a dialogue amongst a community.” 
 
“What is this place? What is this thing? Why is it here?” shares Bodner, “Art in public places gives that sense of place, which is extremely important in sensitive places like Wailuku where war and turmoil once existed. It’s important for people to know the history before they can determine what they want from their community in the future.”
 
While working with the Public Works Wailuku Highways Division crew to help identify and install a base for the 250-pound sculpture, ST*BA Project Administrator Erin Wade was introduced to Life Scout Jonathan Kamehanaokala Merchant. Mentored by Wailuku Clean and Safe ambassador Lawrence Kauha'aha'a, Merchant is currently developing his Eagle Scout Project “Little Free Library,” which are public bookcases stationed in Wailuku to promote neighborhood book exchanges. The team embraced this idea by enlisting SMALL TOWN * BIG ART artist Amanda Joy Bowers, who meticulously painted a hīnaʻi in her collaborative Resemble The 'Alalā mural earlier this year, to hand paint the miniature libraries and setting up time with Bodner and Lake-Farm to talk story about the concept 'a 'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia - No task is too big when done together by all. Now, Merchant is part of the SMALL TOWN * BIG ART family with his community-building through the arts installation. Together with Bodner’s installation, these projects illustrate the proverb "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” 
 
Merchant’s “Little Free Library” will be stationed at the Safety Office on Market Street in Wailuku, and will hold books for people in the community to take and return, effectively creating a free library that is easy to access. “I want to do this project because I have always found joy in reading a good book,” says Merchant, “Ever since I was in elementary school, I have loved to read. With this project, I hope to spread my love for reading with others, especially those who might not have access to books on a regular basis, hopefully increasing the communities’ love of learning, as well as improve the visual aspect.” When asked to select an ‘ōlelo no‘eau that best aligned with his intention, Merchant - like his January 3 unveiling partner Jessica Bodner - chose: 'A 'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia - No task is too big when done together by all. 
 
Join us for the free unveiling event in Kīpuka Square on Market Street (just beside Iao Theater) from 6 - 9 PM on Friday, January 3, 2020. Please consider donating a book to Merchant’s “Little Free Library” and joining the conversation at @smalltownbigart. 

In November 2018, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced that Maui County was awarded one of 60 national Our Town grants to support the 2-year planning and implementation of pilot arts programming in Wailuku Town. Entitled SMALL TOWN * BIG ART, the project is led by county redevelopment program planner Erin Wade and arts administrator Kelly McHugh-White, with guidance and support by Sissy Lake-Farm, Director of Hale Hōʻikeʻike at the Bailey House/ Maui Historical Society.
 
The NEA’s signature creative placemaking grant program, Our Town grants support partnerships of artists, arts organizations, and municipal government that work to revitalize neighborhoods. This practice places arts at the table with land-use, transportation, economic development, education, housing, infrastructure, and public safety strategies to address a community’s challenges. Creative placemaking highlights the distinctiveness of a place, encouraging residents to identify and build upon their local creative assets.
 
In its first year, a call-for-entries was crafted in pursuit of performing and visual public art proposals that promote the unique history, culture and community of Wailuku Town by highlighting the contemporary art community with a unique and diverse platform for artists to execute and display original artwork. Proposal evaluation and selection criteria aimed for quality, style, experience in creating communal or public art, significance to Wailuku and alignment with a pre-selected ʻōlelo noʻeau.
 
During this time, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART was approached by PangeaSeed Foundation to collaborate on SeaWalls: Artists for Oceans, their principal mural program made up of an international consortium of 250 professional artists. This union offered SMALL TOWN * BIG ART the opportunity to design a proof of concept, funding the SeaWalls project and offering thematic development while learning from their very seasoned team of artists and collaborators. This partnership resulted in 10 new “Mauka to Makai” murals throughout Wailuku Town, and an additional 6 on the campus of Baldwin High School.
 
51 SMALL TOWN * BIG ART proposals were submitted through CaFÉ, a public, online call-for-artists management system run by WESTAF (Western States Arts Federation) and a review panel was created with a careful balance of community, historical, art and grant making expertise. 13 projects were selected to move into project development (phase 2) in order to sharpen timelines, budgets, opportunities for community engagement, project renderings and any additional resource management.
 
Now undergoing full implementation, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART has executed public art collaborations with lightwork artist Andy Behrle of Kīhei, Canadian-born muralist Emmanuel Jarus, and Wailuku-based E.H.A (Endemic Hawaii Artists), comprised of Kirk Kurokawa, Elmer Bio, Amanda Bowers and Noble Richardson, with an additional Día de los Muertos event in which the public made offerings – photos, food, flowers, etc. – for a communal shrine created at Kīpuka Square with Jackie Goring and Tamara Li. Countless community members have supported these projects with their manaʻo and hands-on participation, consistently remarking on the sense of community, inspiration and education that each experience has offered.
 
Andy Behrle’s September 2019 work entitled “lost & found” was a digitally created reimagination of the stained glass windows that once adorned Saint Anthony’s Church in Wailuku, before the structure was lost to arson in 1977. Projected onto the side of Historic Iao Theater, Kīpuka Square (the area between the police substation and the theater) was transformed “into a sort of open cathedral and contemplative space,” according to a Maui Time cover story, “like moments of contemplation and like water, the projection ebbs and flows – literally – as steady examination reveals the panels of the resurrected stained glass to be moving, living, close-up images of water. Starting in black and white, the Gothic skeleton of the lost window fills with color before returning to the shades of grey and swelling with color once again. There are four different compositions, each with six videos of water “painting” the recreated stained glass.” Andy and the SMALL TOWN * BIG ART team worked closely for 3 months to research, collect and share stories of the church and Wailuku River that would ultimately be unveiled for just 1 night.
 
Later in September, Emmanuel Jarus joined the team with a full day offering of free portraiture classes at Wailuku’s classic Sabado Studios, where he was able to spend time cultivating his mural concept: ʻIke aku, ʻike mai. Kōkua aku, kōkua mai. Pēlā ka nohona ʻohana. (“Watch, observe. Help others and accept help. That is the family way.”) During his 3-week residency, a Wailuku family invited Jarus on a fishing trip where he observed and learned first hand the experience of spear fishing. “In freshwater and salt, water as the heartbeat of life’s existence resonated,” shares the artist, “having had the opportunity to be immersed within the river and ocean waters guided by Wailuku residents, and, taking in where the stream meets the sea at the Waiheʻe Coastal Dunes and Wetlands Refuge, these experiences observing life became the inspiration for the mural.”
 
“I like the approach he took in relation to the back of the subject,” shared Sissy, “kua being the back and how important the kua is to us as people. How we relate the kua to things as a fundamental part of our body’s structure, and how we relate the kua or back to us as a people in relation to genealogy, and the parts of how the generations are formulated.” Sissy led a public blessing of the artwork, completed in October, as friends and neighbors got to know the artist and learn more about SMALL TOWN * BIG ART.
 
In November, E.H.A engaged Wailuku Elementary School, Iao School and Pūnana Leo o Maui to help paint their piece Pō Mekeʻau (nightfall) alongside Wells Park. Exhibiting “a reflection of perspectives,” according to the artists statement, the piece depicts Wailuku’s four rivers, kukui and pohaku as a cohesive representation that “no task is too big when protecting our great kupuna that sustains our levity and cultural significance that live through the hands of our mentors and hearts of our keiki.” Community member Shahlia Wainui-Tucker shared that SMALL TOWN * BIG ART offers a chance for community artists to depict values of the area that they are working in and that this art “has the power to connect people across all platforms, cultures and religions.”
 
Monthly SMALL TOWN * BIG ART opportunities throughout Wailuku Town to talk story with artists and collaborators, attend free rehearsals and performances, experience mural and installation exhibits and become a integral part of the story of Wailuku Town will continue until June 2020, with upcoming artists and groups including the Maui Academy of Performing Arts, installation artist Michael Takemoto, performance artist Leilehua Yuen and - next up - award-winning sculptor Jessica Bodner, who is currently creating a six-foot reclaimed steel basket sculpture inspired by the hīnaʻi (basket fish trap) used by the Iawaiʻa (fisherman). “Creative placemaking creates a dialogue and allows the community to be involved,” shares Bodner, “What is this place? What is this thing?  Why is it here? Art in public places gives that sense of place, which is extremely important in sensitive places like Wailuku where war and turmoil once existed. It’s important for people to know the history before they can determine what they want from their community in the future.”

A full week into their 2-week painting process, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART artists EHA (Endemic Hawaii Artists) have already engaged in hundreds of onsite conversations about their developing mural at 2049 Wells Street, (where the Omura Building meets Wells Park). The live mural making exhibition marks the fourth official ST*BA installation, following Andy Behrle’s “lost & found” lightwork in September, Emmanuel Jarus’ mural in October and Jackie Goring and Tamara Li’s Día de los Muertos gathering earlier this month.
 
Working on a piece inspired by the pōhaku that line the Wailuku River, EHA’s mural elements po (night, blackness, original darkness) and haku (to make or invent) can already be identified throughout the developing artwork. The team’s featured ‘ōlelo no‘eau is ‘a‘ohe hana nui ke alu ‘ia (no task is too big when done together by all), a fitting proverb that acknowledges all of the work and manaʻo that goes into developing a place-based public art program like SMALL TOWN * BIG ART.
 
As the composition and theme continue to unfold, Hōaka Delos Reyes is one of the figures that can be seen in the artwork. A talented expert in the field of stone-on-stone carving (kālai pōhaku), he is one of the rare people on the planet who can do this type of carving.
 
Friend Kyle Nakanelua says of him: “Hoaka talks to stones. But that’s not the amazing thing. They talk back! He has to call for the stone, ask for volunteers among the stones that exist. Once a stone appears, he negotiates with it. In the process, the stone tells him where it wants to go. Listening to stones … that’s the unseen ability he has.”
 
“We have a saying in Hawaiian: He ola pōhaku, he make pōhaku. Stone gives life, stone takes life.” - Hōaka Delos Reyes
 
Also observable in the artwork is the kukui nut tree – a symbol of enlightenment, protection, guidance and peace, with spiritual powers that are still believed to flow through Hawaiian culture and its ceremonies. Brought to Hawaii by Polynesians migrating to the Hawaiian Islands, the kukui was highly revered by ancient Hawaiians for its many uses, and became an essential part of life, providing raw materials for medicine and healing, dye, canoe-building, and most commonly, for light (both literally and spiritually). The word “kukui” means light or torch; its English name is ‘candlenut.’ In 1959, the kukui tree was made the official tree emblem for the state of Hawai‘i.
 
If you are able to, please stop by our live mural making exhibit at 2049 Wells Street now through Nov 30, 2019 to meet SMALL TOWN * BIG ART artists Amanda, Elmer, Kirk and Noble and tell us what you see!
 
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Amanda Joy Bowers is a visual artist born and raised in Haiku, Maui. She attended Wake Forest University as a Presidential Scholar for Distinguished Achievement in Art, a university Ambassador for the Arts, and a Richter Scholar for International Independent Studies. While attending Wake Forest University she studied old master painting as a certified Louvre copyist in Paris, France. She then conducted independent research on the art of Balinese woodcarving and Javanese batik textiles in Indonesia. She graduated in 2012 with a major in Studio Art and a double minor in Art History and Entrepreneurship. She now is a freelance fine artist and the owner and designer of Skelefin Studios, LLC.
 
Kirk Kurokawa, a local boy of Hawaiian, Japanese, and Chinese descent, was born and raised on Maui. He received a BFA with distinction in Illustration from the California College of Arts and Crafts. In 2001, he returned home to Maui, became a self-taught oil painter and pursued his dream of becoming a fine artist. Kurokawa’s paintings focus predominantly on the “simple, everyday life moments” and have been showcased in various exhibitions throughout the state. Although he often paints native birds, flowers and locals of Hawaii, he is best known for his portraiture. He has been in every installment of the Schaefer Portrait Challenge, and was awarded the Juror’s Choice Award in 2006 and the People’s Choice Award in 2015. He is also the first and only native Hawaiian to paint the official Portrait of the Governor of the State of Hawaii.
 
Born and raised in Hawaii, Elmer Bio has always been deeply connected to art. His Father, well known as the airbrush guy in Maui, convinced him to help out airbrushing live at the county fair one year in 2002 and it’s been an annual duty for him ever since. Aside from taking custom orders for banners and t-shirts in high school, Elmer also received state and national juried art awards. His consistent pace and high demand as a custom airbrush artist has kept him busy for quite some time, and recently mural painting has been added to his professional career as a local business owner. In the past years he has been an essential part in creating 3 public murals that involved 2 public schools in Wailuku and a cornerstone business in Kahului, and he also found time to step back into competition earning himself a finalist in the highly respected tri-annual Schaefer Portrait Challenge.
 
Noble Richardson, born and raised in Wailuku, Maui. He attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and received his BFA. His work was exhibited in the Schaefer Portrait Challenge 2009 receiving the Marion Freeman People’s Choice Award, Schaefer Portrait Challenge 2015 and 2018, Malama Wao Akua 2013 receiving the Art of Conservation Award and 2016, featured in the Maui Arts & Cultural Center Surfing Hawai‘i exhibit and Art Maui 2019. He continues his passion for art, and painting subjects that have a strong culturally rooted story, and creating work on multi-media surfaces. He is also a Wailuku Elementary School art teacher; teaching students from K-5, freelance artist and muralist. 

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