First Friday Performance
‘Ukulele Virtuoso Gordon Mark
Friday, March 2, 2007, 6-8 p.m.
Hawai‘i State Art Museum, 2nd Floor
Free Admission

Hear a free musical performance by ‘ukulele virtuoso Gordon Mark for First Friday at HiSAM. Mark plays classical music and local standards. He has crafted many original transcriptions in a uniquely beautiful style. He works totally by ear, without written music. In his long career, he has performed with the Honolulu Symphony, the Art of Solo ‘Ukulele super group, and many others. Increasingly in demand as a teacher, he has created an easy to learn method to play ‘ukulele, which he now shares with students throughout the islands. We also invite you to see our art exhibitions that will be open for First Friday from 5 to 9 p.m. For more information, visit www.hawaii.gov/sfca.

Poetry Out Loud
Tuesday, March 6, 2007, 7-10 p.m.
Tenney Theatre on Beretania St.
Next to Washington Place
Free Admission

Poetry Out Loud is a national initiative presented by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation through the HSFCA. Come and enjoy the fine poetry recitations by high school students. The project is coordinated by the Honolulu Theatre for Youth. For more information, call 839-9885 or visit www.poetryoutloud.org with data on the national program, educational materials, and poems.

Last year’s Poetry Out Loud finalists at Tenney Theatre.

Historic Preservation Awareness Day
Wednesday, March 7, 2007, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Hawai‘i State Capitol, 3rd Floor Lanai
Free Admission

This event, which is co-sponsored by the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation and the Legislature’s Heritage Caucus, presents a great opportunity for non-profit organizations and businesses to showcase their programs and products illustrating how preservation of our culture and history is making a difference in Hawai‘i. The HSFCA will have a table to provide legislators and the public with information and publications on the grants, services, and programs of the HSFCA and the Hawai‘i State Art Museum. For more information, call 523-2900 or visit www.historichawaii.org and click on Calendar.

Second Saturday – Line-Color-Quilt!
Saturday, March 10, 2007, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Hawai‘i State Art Museum, 1st Floor
Free Admission

This month’s family event will feature members of the Hawai‘i Quilt Guild who will teach you how to make a contemporary quilt block! Experienced quilters will guide you through the process of creating a personalized quilt block using your own original artwork. Your simple line design will go from an idea to a ready-to-take-home artwork. No drawing, sewing or quilting skills needed. It’s simple and fun for all ages! Quick “family-friendly” tours of the art exhibitions are available upon request. Art activities are in the Multipurpose Room on the first floor. Parking at Ali‘i Place is only $3 all day on Saturday! Enter the parking lot on the right side of Alakea Street between King and Hotel. For more information, visit www.hawaii.gov/sfca.

Learn how to make your own contemporary quilt block.

Art & Story
Lana‘i Student Presentations
Saturday, March 10, 2007, 6-9 p.m.
Library Room, Four Seasons Resort
Lodge at Koele, Lana‘i
Free Admission

Art & Story is a culminating event by the students at Lana‘i School. They have spent the semester learning oral history and storytelling techniques from Hawai‘i storyteller, Nyla Fujii-Babb. Based on Lana‘i island and family history, the students learn how to interpret historical facts and make their stories come alive. Students also use music and the visual arts to tell their stories. They will be doing their presentations for family, friends, and visitors at the Lodge at Koele. Enjoy an evening dedicated to preserving the rich past of Lana‘i. For more information, call (808) 565-7503 or visit www.lanaiart.org.

Last year’s participants at the Lodge at Koele with Auntie Nyla.

Artlunch Lecture – Yida Wang
Tuesday, March 27, 2007, 12-1 p.m.
Hawai‘i State Art Museum, 1st Floor
Free Admission

This month’s lecture is entitled The HSFCA Awards Recipient Series: Painter Yida Wang – Seam: A Vision in Between and Beyond. Yida Wang’s work examines the connections and relationships between the maintenance of individuality and the reflection of diverse cultural influences. As a person of Asian origin living in Western society, her work emphasizes transformations that stem from cultural cross-pollination and the disjunction of bi-cultural existence. She will discuss her artistic experiments: fusing Chinese cultural heritage and contemporary concerns, and exploring connections among diverse themes, social environments, cultural trends, and history within a visual context. Wang is an Assistant Professor at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa and a recipient of an HSFCA Individual Artist Fellowship Award in Visual Arts for 2006. For more information, visit www.hawaii.gov/sfca.

See Our Art Exhibitions
Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Hawai‘i State Art Museum, 2nd Floor
Free Admission

The Hawai‘i State Art Museum is dedicated to presenting the largest and finest collection of works by Hawai‘i artists that celebrate the diverse artistic and cultural legacy of Hawai‘i.

Enriched by Diversity: The Art of Hawai‘i, is a semi-permanent exhibition featuring 132 works of art by 105 Hawai‘i-based artists from the Art in Public Places Collection. Inspirational themes in the installation revolve around rediscovering Hawaiian heritage, Asian roots, social consciousness, and cultural traditions.

Precious Resources: The Land & The Sea, is a new temporary exhibition that explores our connection to earth and water and the impact of our natural surroundings on the identity, daily lives, and cultures of Hawai‘i. Artists include Allyn Bromley, Robert Hamada, Kathleen Kam, Herb Kane, Wayne Levin, Hiroki Morinoue, Louis Pohl, Franco Salmoiraghi, and John Wisnosky. For more information, visit www.hawaii.gov/sfca.

“Enriched by Diversity: The Art of Hawai‘i”

“Precious Resources: The Land & The Sea”

Conservation of Artwork
Commissioned by HSFCA
Art in Public Places Program

Old Hawai‘i (1979), an HSFCA-commissioned fresco by Jean Charlot, was recently conserved by painting specialist Viviana Dominguez of the Sculpture Conservation Studio in Los Angeles. The mural is located at the entrance to the Leeward Community College Theater and spans over 90 feet in length and 25 feet in height. Charlot mastered the fresco technique of applying pigment to fresh, moist wall plaster. This artwork is an excellent example of how the artist used his signature style and a vivid color palette, to depict Hawaiian men and women performing daily activities, such as tapa and poi making and diving. In this conservation treatment, Dominguez re-adhered loose plaster; patched the fresco surface where paint loss occurred, using a mixture of sand and lime; and did inpainting, or retouching, in needed areas.

MAKA'A, Eike Aku I ke Awana Uluwehi I Na Kuahiwi O Manoa (1979), a copper sculpture by Bumpei Akaji, was recently conserved for the HSFCA by sculpture conservator, Rosa Lowinger of Los Angeles. Located at the front of the Biosciences Medical Building on the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa campus, Akaji developed this piece in honor of Manoa Valley. The artwork is meant to abstractly reflect the unusual formation of the Ko‘olau mountains in the area. Lowinger worked together with conservation technicians Mike Jones of Art Services and Linda Gue to thoroughly clean the sculpture using the following techniques: dry brushing to remove particulate matter and debris, removal of old wax coatings with organic solvents, and power washing with tap water and a diluted soap solution. Lowinger also lead the team in: the removal of copper streaking and corrosion by light mechanical means (abrasive pads, etc.); the reintegration of patina losses using the appropriate patina chemicals and heat; and the final application of a wax “sealant,” which helps to even out the surface appearance and provide protection against the natural environment.

Mike Jones of Art Services restores a sculpture by Bumpei Akaji at UH Manoa.

The sculpture abstractly reflects the unusual formation of the Ko‘olau mountains.

Join the Friends of HiSAM

We invite you to join the Friends of the Hawai‘i State Art Museum (HiSAM). By simply joining, you can help maintain a free, public institution dedicated to the art and people of Hawai‘i. You can join by phone by calling 586-0305, or you can do a download from our website by clicking on Friends of HiSAM Application Form.

HSFCA Online Publications

For more information on HSFCA programs, services, and events read our online Publications and Documents.

Sign Up for HSFCA Enews

If a friend has sent you this HSFCA Enewsletter, and you would like to sign up for future broadcasts, please click here.

Visit the HSFCA Website

Visit our website www.hawaii.gov/sfca for news on HSFCA grants, programs, services, and events, plus information on Hawai‘i State Art Museum events and art exhibitions.

Hawai‘i Arts and Culture Calendar

Want to know what’s happening with the arts in Hawai‘i? Check out the Hawai‘i Arts and Culture Calendar section of our website. It lists current activities and events presented by Hawai‘i’s nonprofit arts and culture organizations. Click on these links to Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Literary Arts, Media Arts, and General Arts & Humanities.

Docent and Volunteer Opportunities

Help our visitors enjoy our museum! We need enthusiastic, outgoing people to assist museum visitors and help them appreciate our current exhibitions. We encourage you to volunteer if you have an interest or background in the arts.

Volunteers are needed in the following areas:
Gallery Attendant – Assist visitors in the galleries.
Information Desk Attendant – Greet visitors to the museum.
Docent – Conduct tours of the exhibition.
Education Assistant – Assist with education programs.
Special Events Assistant – Assist staff in event coordination.

You may download an application by clicking on: HiSAM Volunteer Application Form. To request an application by mail or for more information, please contact HiSAM visitor Services, via telephone at 586-9959 or via email at hisamvolunteers@gmail.com.