“Connecting Cords: The Hawai‘i Nei Invitational Exhibition” will be on display 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, July 8 through Aug. 19, at the Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
“Connecting Cords: The Hawai‘i Nei Invitational Exhibition” will be on display 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, July 8 through Aug. 19, at the Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
The multimedia exhibit showcases the works of seven artists focusing on the fiber, form and function of Hawaii’s cordage plants. The exhibit is open to the public and free of charge although park entrance fees apply. A special opening reception with participating artists is from 5-7 p.m. July 8 at the gallery.
The participating artists, including Lynn Capell, Gretchen Grove, Bonnie Sol Hahn, Heather Mettler, Aidan Murray, Dominic Tidmarsh and John Strobehn, were selected from the 2016 Hawai‘i Nei Exhibition celebrating native species. For this exhibit, the selected artists were asked to represent traditional Hawaiian cordage plants including nui (coconut), hau, olona, wauke, ‘ahu‘awa, ‘uki‘uki, ‘ie‘ie, huehue, koali ‘ai (morning glory) and hala.
The plants, their origins and the parts of the plants used for cordage as well as where and how the plants grow, the fiber source of each plant and how the cordage is prepared were investigated in a unique series of workshops hosted by VAC.
“We are looking forward to displaying this diverse collection of artworks,” said gallery manager Emily C. Weiss. “We already see that some artists have beautifully represented literal depictions of plants and materials while others have chosen to focus on the cord as a metaphor, the uniting factor that ties one to the environment, uniting us to each other and the community we create as a whole.”