The Volcano Art Center is proud to announce a new exhibition titled “From Pele To Poli‘ahu: The Kuleana of Change,” that will run from Sept. 24-Nov. 6 at the VAC gallery in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The exhibit presents approximately 30 new original artworks by Waimea-based artist Dominic Tidmarsh.
The works of art featured are inspired by the life-changing experiences of living through the eruption of Kilauea in 2018, and his subsequent relocation to Waimea. Tidmarsh compares and contrasts the lands of Pele and Poli‘ahu and presents the work as an expression of the responsibility we all bear to embrace the inevitability of change in our lives. As an expression of this Kuleana, Tidmarsh chose to work extensively in media that he had never used before and to explore and develop new methods of working.
The main body of work consists of a series of landscape paintings intricately rendered in soft pastels, a medium not traditionally associated with either precision or detail. In addition, a series of miniatures of Mauna Kea executed in colored pencil stand in vivid contrast to dramatic large-scale watercolor paintings inspired by the eruption of 2018.
“Through the incredible amount of detail characteristic of Tidmarsh’s work paired with the splendid luminosity of his new medium Dominic alludes to the richness of texture and light which only the vast landscapes of Hawai‘i Island offer. This collection of works is not to be missed,” said Gallery Director Emily C. Weiss.
The gallery is open from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily. While the exhibit is free, HVNP park entrance fees apply. The exhibit is sponsored by the Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts. Please visit www.volcanoartcenter.org for more information, or email gallery@volcanoartcenter.org.