"Our kūpuna's profound poetry--succinct yet deeply layered--unveil uniquely Hawaiian ways of thinking. These wisdoms have the power to reshape our souls. Our family has felt this transformation as we turn to Pukui's treasured tome time after time. Not only to learn about whatever topics we may be pondering, but also to makawalu maps for continued exploration. For every staggering insight ʻŌlelo Noʻeau gifts us, there are tenfold subtle clues to unwrap. After all, all sources are indeed starting-points. Often, we grieve how much ʻike was lost via colonialization. But the works of Pukui are golden examples of my goodness, we have so much! And that wisdom has been cultivated and curated for millennia. What a legacy to malama. I'm so grateful to be of a place with such cultural abundance. I'm so grateful to be part of a community that champions that intelligence. With each of these public works of art having its taproot in Ōlelo Noʻeau, this forest of community creativty will surely flourish for generations." -- Anuhea Yagi & Baby Luana
"We should remember that Pukui just remembered those for us. So it is open to our own interpretation how it is. So she is quoted, but that is not her words. They are just her remembering the words of our kūpuna. Through ʻōlelo noʻeau, Pukui connected community members, and you can see that in every aspect of Hawaii." -- Ashley Lindsey
"At a glance, people do not immediately look at my freckles, pale skin, almond shaped eyes and think “Hooooo….Hawaiian!” In fact, I often felt ostracized and alienated for not being “Hawaiian enough,” despite an education from Kamehameha Schools and a genealogical chart carefully curated by my grandfather. Roots often cannot be seen, but they run deep through the earth and can be felt. After years of feeling disconnected from a culture, I realized you cannot run away from who you are. While I’m in deep meditation through art, I can finally feel connected, feel Hawaiian, feel acceptance. Those of us who haven’t grown up with olelo, lei making, paddling, dancing hula, etc…. We cannot begin to grasp the concepts of our ancestors without documentation carefully passed down. I have an immense gratitude for Mary Kawena Pukui’s insight and foresight to document these proverbs so that the stories, the language, the words, heart and soul of our ancestors…can be perpetuated and interpreted into several forms of art as well as every day life. Each generation is a reflection of the former, and these reflections can be warped and distorted as time goes by, which is why documentation is so crucial. I believe Kumu Kawena Pukui did this first and foremost as a means of survival…and now her translations have been immortalized in several other accessible art forms with a sense of permanence that will most likely outlast all of our lifetimes. “Wailuku i ka malu he kuawa” or “Wailuku in the shelter of the valley.” These words resonated so deeply with me and my artistic collaborator, Courtney Chargin. We are based in Wailuku, protected by Wailuku, and proud to find inspiration in this sacred place. I drive under and/or over the bridge every single day, inhaling and exhaling, finding the foundation in knowing that everything is going to be okay, somehow. I think about waking up early before field trips to go to Takamiya Market to grab bentos…I think about all the local makers who fill Paradise Now with aloha…the resilience and deep love for the small businesses like Request and countless others…artists like David Sandell and Philip Sabado who I looked up to since I was a little girl…born on Maui, raised in Waiehu, educated in Waihe’e, rooted in Wailuku." -- Bailey Onaga
"The ʻōlelo noʻeau that Mrs. Pukui compiled represent continuity of culture and values across centuries. Although the origins of the phrases that she preserved range in time from from extreme antiquity through to perhaps the early 1900s, so many are still commonly heard today. They exemplify values, lessons, and histories of the kūpuna which are still relevant and cherished. Connecting each work of public art to a specific ʻōlelo noʻeau will not only help to ensure that the artists can connect on a deeper level with our culture as they embark on their journeys of creation, but it can also serve to facilitate a deepened connection between the viewer, the art, and our home." -- Cody Pueo Pata
"We should remember that Pukui just remembered those for us. So it is open to our own interpretation how it is. So she is quoted, but that is not her words. They are just her remembering the words of our kūpuna. Through ʻōlelo noʻeau, Pukui connected community members, and you can see that in every aspect of Hawaii." -- Ashley Lindsey
"At a glance, people do not immediately look at my freckles, pale skin, almond shaped eyes and think “Hooooo….Hawaiian!” In fact, I often felt ostracized and alienated for not being “Hawaiian enough,” despite an education from Kamehameha Schools and a genealogical chart carefully curated by my grandfather. Roots often cannot be seen, but they run deep through the earth and can be felt. After years of feeling disconnected from a culture, I realized you cannot run away from who you are. While I’m in deep meditation through art, I can finally feel connected, feel Hawaiian, feel acceptance. Those of us who haven’t grown up with olelo, lei making, paddling, dancing hula, etc…. We cannot begin to grasp the concepts of our ancestors without documentation carefully passed down. I have an immense gratitude for Mary Kawena Pukui’s insight and foresight to document these proverbs so that the stories, the language, the words, heart and soul of our ancestors…can be perpetuated and interpreted into several forms of art as well as every day life. Each generation is a reflection of the former, and these reflections can be warped and distorted as time goes by, which is why documentation is so crucial. I believe Kumu Kawena Pukui did this first and foremost as a means of survival…and now her translations have been immortalized in several other accessible art forms with a sense of permanence that will most likely outlast all of our lifetimes. “Wailuku i ka malu he kuawa” or “Wailuku in the shelter of the valley.” These words resonated so deeply with me and my artistic collaborator, Courtney Chargin. We are based in Wailuku, protected by Wailuku, and proud to find inspiration in this sacred place. I drive under and/or over the bridge every single day, inhaling and exhaling, finding the foundation in knowing that everything is going to be okay, somehow. I think about waking up early before field trips to go to Takamiya Market to grab bentos…I think about all the local makers who fill Paradise Now with aloha…the resilience and deep love for the small businesses like Request and countless others…artists like David Sandell and Philip Sabado who I looked up to since I was a little girl…born on Maui, raised in Waiehu, educated in Waihe’e, rooted in Wailuku." -- Bailey Onaga
"The ʻōlelo noʻeau that Mrs. Pukui compiled represent continuity of culture and values across centuries. Although the origins of the phrases that she preserved range in time from from extreme antiquity through to perhaps the early 1900s, so many are still commonly heard today. They exemplify values, lessons, and histories of the kūpuna which are still relevant and cherished. Connecting each work of public art to a specific ʻōlelo noʻeau will not only help to ensure that the artists can connect on a deeper level with our culture as they embark on their journeys of creation, but it can also serve to facilitate a deepened connection between the viewer, the art, and our home." -- Cody Pueo Pata