If you haven’t yet seen the mural affectionately nicknamed “The Eagle” by those who have, you’ve skipped heading down the full length of Kinoole Street in recent days.
If you haven’t yet seen the mural affectionately nicknamed “The Eagle” by those who have, you’ve skipped heading down the full length of Kinoole Street in recent days.
A motorist yelled “great job!” to Sam Yong(https://www.facebook.com/inthewolf/) of Melbourne, Australia, as she drove by during Monday’s afternoon rain. Yong is painting the mural on the building at the corner of Kinoole and Ponahawai Street in Hilo.
The mural is part of an expanding effort to beautify downtown Hilo and make public art a focus of the community. The effort is led by Temple Children, an “arts and sustainability organization” that works to “strengthen communities, promote social and environmental innovation, and incite positive global change.”
The group project, organized by a woman originally from Hilo and her boyfriend, focuses on environmental awareness, locally sourced foods and recycling or up-cycling (making something valuable out of discarded materials).
Project organizers hope to plant seeds of art appreciation among keiki and adults alike. And they’ve already received sponsorships from area businesses and individuals, and spontaneous appreciation from community members.
On Tuesday, the driver of a pickup truck — don’t try this at home — took his hands off the steering wheel and clapped as his truck rumbled by a mural being painted by Jet Martinez(https://www.facebook.com/JET-MARTINEZ-74971828613/?fref=ts) (originally of Mexico, who now lives in Oakland, Calif.) on the makai side of the former Ebesugawa Flower Shop.
Later, a man pulled his pickup next to painter Rick Hayward of Australia to express appreciation for the change of view.
Hayward — with an art duo known as “Frank and Mimi”(http://www.frankandmimi.com/about) — was painting alongside his collaborator, Emily Devers.
Devers said their piece, near the Big Island Backpacking Hostel, focuses on sustainable food production in a land of plenty.
If care is taken during the food-production process, Devers said, your body will be nourished in the right way.
She said the papaya, Kapoho solo, included in their mural is the only one on Hawaii Island that is not genetically modified. They didn’t know until they arrived that there’s a papaya tree behind the wall their mural graces.
Inside the hostel, Kim Winckelmann has been painting a wall-sized jellyfish mural.
“This is the first mural that I’ve ever tried doing, so I want to do a lot more. I want to do a lot more murals in Hilo,” said Winckelmann, who is not part of the Temple Children project, but exactly the kind of artist the project seeks to encourage — so that public art will become a part of downtown Hilo’s fabric.
The murals project is a long-term priority for Miya Tsukazaki, originally of Hilo, who now travels from Australia to Hilo regularly. A first mural by her boyfriend, David “Meggs” Hooke, was completed in December 2015. Two more were part of a second Hilo project in May.
This time, six murals are underway with seven painters, and one videographer documenting their efforts.
Sponsors from the community have stepped forward to fund each work of art or offer in-kind donations of food or beverages, including groups and individuals such as KTA Super Stores, HPM Building Supply, Sharks Coffee, Sweet Cane Cafe, Novo Painting (Cole and Lisa Palea), OluKai, Aloha Mondays, Loved by the Sun, Hana Hou Hilo, Moon and Turtle, Agasa Furniture Store, Island Naturals, Big Island Booch, the Locavore Store, PUEO, OK Farms, Takamine Construction, Aiona Car Sales, Leandra Keuma of Circle of Life Hilo and Ashley Kierkiewicz.
The artists took part in educational efforts to help spur their art.
For example, they toured and helped with the restoration of a taro farm in Waipio Valley, learning about sustainable agriculture. Sponsor chefs, coffee houses and restaurants offered in-kind support to keep the artists fed with locally sourced food for the week.
Tsukazaki said keiki volunteers will work alongside the professional artisans this week.
Yoskay Yamamoto of Long Beach, Calif., and originally of Japan, said his mural, at the Shell gas station on Kamehameha Avenue reflects his realization that it’s important to reconnect with nature. He helped plant taro roots during the farm restoration.
“That part of living is a very important thing to do,” he said.
Artists expect to finish the murals by Sunday — if weather cooperates.
Email Jeff Hansel at jhansel@hawaiitribune-herald.com.