SOLO HAY UN OCEÁNO - THERE IS ONLY ONE OCEAN
Collaboration with Taylor Reinhold
Location: Boston, MA
Sea Walls - International mural festival curated by Pangeaseed Foundation.
The UN's 7 Principles of Ocean Literacy places 'There is Only One Ocean' as its top priority.
This statement serves as a potent reminder that our oceans unite us all. Growing up in Hawaii and spending extensive hours in the ocean, I couldn't help but notice the diverse array of plastic debris with various inscriptions washed up on the shore. It was later explained to me that the world's waste could be swept by the ocean's currents into the Pacific, due to forces at sea. This realization highlighted the fact that there is, indeed, only one ocean that links us together.
‘A‘ohe hana nui ke alu ‘ia
“No task is too big when done together by all.”
Location: SALT At Our Kaka’ako 675 Auahi St. Honolulu HI, 96813
Commissioned by SALT At Our Kaka’ako
"A'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia" was the first on-street mural in Kaka'ako, Honolulu's Art District. It was located on a portion of Auahi Street between Keawe and Coral Streets and was painted over six months later. The 3,000 square foot artwork features a woman stringing a plumeria lei with her two keiki (children), representing the 'ōlelo no'eau (Hawaiian proverb), which means "No task is too big when done together by all."
HILO HONU
Location: Auahi Street, Honolulu, HI
POW! WOW! HAWAII 2020
THE MANGROVE NURSERY
Location: Frederiksted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Island
Sea Walls - International mural festival curated by Pangeaseed Foundation.
Mangroves are a type of tree that grows in mudflats along shorelines of tropical regions. They are recognizable by their complex root systems, which serve as homes to sponges, ascidians, algae, and corals, offer protection from storms, improve water quality and provide crucial habitat for juvenile animals such as reef fish, pelagic fish, and crustaceans. It is easy for us to overlook the little building blocks in our environment, but each little piece plays an important part, and often, we miss the importance of crucial elements. By removing an ecosystem like a mangrove forest along the shoreline, to build whatever it is we are building, we are inadvertently removing the bio-filter for that water as well as the storm surge protection that was offered. Not to mention the thousands of lives that will be extinguished in the removal as well as the millions of lives that would no longer start their journeys in the maze of roots. I chose to paint a representation of the mangroves from underwater as a way to focus on the root systems, and what I see as the nursery of the trees. I chose to represent the nursery at twenty percent capacity as a way to show the loss of biodiversity that is occurring right now.
A LEI FOR YOU
Location: 2255 Kalakaua Ave, Honolulu, HI 96815
"A Lei For You" was commissioned by Sheraton Waikiki for their "Aloha Landing" as a welcoming element, where the buses load and offload tourists. The design shows two hands making a lei, the Hawaiian sign of welcoming and used to mark special events.
FARMERS MARKET
Location: 321 Keawe St. Hilo, HI 96720
“Farmers Market” was painted for Temple Children, an arts and sustainability organization based on the Big Island of Hawaii. Their project to beautify downtown Hilo, Hawaii. The piece is on the side of the central market downtown, and it is meant to inspire healthy shopping habits.
MANO WAHINE
Location: 18 Tianshi Road, Longhu Shan District, Yingtan City, Jiangxi Province, China
“Mano Wahine” was painted at Hua Quan Village in Longhu, China, where I was able to represent Hawaii in the Miracle Walls project. The place consists of many murals spread over the vast property that boasts over 300 galleries, studios, and shops. The figure I painted is representative of a creature from my dreams while on shark dives, a haunting shark/ woman hybrid.
MAKING FRIENDS
POW! WOW! HAWAII 2016
‘Making Friends” was painted during Pow! Wow! Hawaii! 2016. This painting based on dreams I had been having influenced by diving. The feel was meant to be light and playful, while not glossing over the shark as a beautiful animal, although the message of people living in harmony and peace with nature still remains.
KE OLA PU’U KEKA’A
Location: 2605 Kaanapali Pkwy, Lahaina, HI 96761
“Ke Ola O Pu’u Keka’a” translates to, The life of Black Rock. This mural was commissioned by Sheraton Black Rock, on Maui. The sea life painted were influenced by diving in that particular area as a child
IMPACT
Location: Block House - Churchill, Manitoba Canada
Collaboration with Mr. Crackedink.
The beluga whales seem so peaceful and playful swimming up and down the shores of Churchill, and it's easy to forget some of the dangers they may face in their aquatic homes. There are a few threats that are directly affected by our actions and can be slowed or eliminated with a bit of care, and one of them is fishing debris. Mr. Crackedink and I decided to bring this topic into view and hopefully start a discussion that moves any fisherman to consider his waste and dispose of it properly.
WRAPED IN LINE
Location: Cozumel, Mexico
Sea Walls international mural festival curated by PangeaSeed Foundation.
The message in the design is: we litter fishing lines, ropes, and endless other types of trash into the oceans and hope the future generations will be able to untangle the mess we’ve left.
LAWAI’A
POW! WOW! HAWAII 2019
I was taught family lineage is stacked upon our po'o (head) like a totem pole of relatives who came before us. The genetic memories of our ancestors are stored above our heads and within us, within every fabric of our being, and the knowledge and skills of those who came before are also there for us to draw upon. We can use the lessons of everyone who comes before us, to help make difficult decisions in life, but only if we listen. Based on these stories, I have been creating images of people engaged in activities and the physical representation of these mouthless ancestors watching and listening, guiding, and helping but unable to speak to us. My mural "Lawai'a," is a fisherman throwing net. His ancestors, fishing and sailing tools, sharks, shells, corals, and other life forms are swimming around his po'o (head) as a way to represent their influence on our actions. The fisherman has cast his throw net and the figures above him are pulling and pushing the net to maximize his catch, as the figure at the top is spotting the final placement of the net and actualizing the fish to be caught. The shape of the net combined with the compositions of the shells and people figures creates the face of the first ancestor, the one who connects us all.
MILU HOPE, MILU MUA
Collaboration with Solomon Enos
POW! WOW! HAWAII 2017
This image is one of man amid a changing world and environment. The idea that maybe humans need to leave the solid ground and descend into the depths of the sea for a thousand years and let the earth surface heal. The thought of how much do we love our children, our grandchildren, our great, great-great, grandchildren, and so on. How much are we willing to sacrifice for the generations we will never even meet? How much change can we embrace, and how much discomfort are we willing to endure to do what is necessary to heal the mother that nurtures us all? The female figure is on her ascension from the depths, as she is released from her coral head bio submarine suit. The suit represents the industry, technology and nature, and the possibility of merging these things into one cohesive being that can be working harmoniously with and for our earthly neighbors and all life forms. The figure meant to represent people, our ability to change, and endure. The blue/ green suit she wears is a second skin that is alive and keeps her plugged into the coral head machine during the long journeys in the deep. The possibility of change is within us all if we are willing to shed our beliefs and grow with one another. Like this woman, if we donned a new skin/ belief system that was beneficial to us as much as our environment and the other souls on the planet, we could travel to the depths of our imaginations and back.
ROCKET MAN
Location: 441 Cooke St, Honolulu, HI 96813
Commissioned by Bento Homes.
HIGH TIDES / LOW TIDES
Location: 104 N Market St, Wailuku, HI 96793
Sea Walls international mural festival curated by PangeaSeed Foundation.
The oceanic composition in “High Tides/ Low Tides” is meant to represent the change in tidal movements throughout the year. The moon phase is stuck on full to indicate the maximum effect of the process and to strengthen the idea of the power caused by a full moon. The large red sun is layered over the ocean as a reminder that a large chunk of our trash is from Japan and other countries far across the sea. The subdued color palette represents the lost luster of plastics as they are heated in the sun and broken down into microplastics. The turtle stuck in the plastic lines, and plastic represents us, people. We stuck in their ways and trapped by routine. The swimmer reaching to pull off the debris is a keiki (children), the literal representation of our future, and the idea of positive change that can be obtained.
MOKU O KEAWE
Collaboration with Solomon Enos
Location: 80 Kuhio St, Hilo, HI 96720
Commissioned by Hawaii Tourism Authority