Shopping for Hawaii's crafts … at the sources

Sunset, Dec, 1986

Shopping for Hawaii's crafts . . . at the sources

Following art and crafts to the source can be one of the special pleasures of a trip to Hawaii--especially when the source is an enthusiastic artist willing to demonstrate and discuss his or her technique.

Listed here and on pages 62 and 63 are seven studios you can visit on Oahu. Some are sleek and airy, with well-defined work spaces; others are creatively cluttered workshops.

All of the craftsmen on our list have found inspiration for their work in Hawaii's legends, culture, or topography. All are 45 minutes or less by car from Waikiki. And all welcome visitors to their studios by appointment (call or write in advance). Most sell their work at their studios.

On December 6 and 7, visitors to Honolulu can see or buy works by these and other artists at the Pacific Handcrafters Guild Christmas Fair at Thomas Square (bounded by Beretania, Victoria, and King streets and Ward Avenue; you can reach it on bus #2 from Waikiki). Admission is free.

The guild's office keeps a list of 225 members' production, representing a wide range of media. If you're interested in meeting other craftsmen, write to the guild at 1121 Nuuanu Ave., Suite 203, Honolulu 96817, or call (808) 538-1600 between 9 and 5 weekdays.

Windword Oahu

Hart & Tagami Gallery, 47-754 Lamaula Rd., Kaneohe; 239-8146; pottery and paintings, by appointment.

"See, touch, and experience' could well be the motto of painter Hiroshi Tagami and potter Richard Hart. The artists display their work (much of it for sale) in an airy back-garden gallery, where they often host classes of schoolchildren who come to touch the pots and meet the artists. Like Japanese mingei folk pottery, Hart's high-fire stoneware and raku pots are durable and useful, simple in form, and colored in earth tones. Tagami's paintings depict aged banyan trees or jagged, cloud-crested peaks and other nature-inspired subjects.

Don't overlook the gardens, with collections of tropical plants and birds--including parrots, cockatoos, and macaws that the artists raise and feed.

Karon & Jeff Chang, 45-523 Kiani St., Kaneohe; 235-0770; ceramics, by appointment.

In a home studio, Jeff Chang creates handthrown stoneware (plates, platters, casseroles), which he finishes with freeform brushwork glazes.

In an adjacent gallery, Chang displays and sells his work (you can also buy it at Liberty House stores in Honolulu). Watch for his "dishwasher's surprise'--a brushwork design that graces the back of each piece.

Lucille Cooper, 44-712A Hoonani Place, Kaneohe; by appointment--call 523-1440 between 9 and noon weekdays.

A painter turned potter, Cooper is best known for ceramic-and-fiber pots, wall hangings, and masks that evoke Hawaii's cultural heritage or volcanic geological origins. Pots are inlaid with fiber swirls that indicate lava flows; on others, jagged tops represent Hawaii's mountains.

Cooper's works are in hotels and private collections throughout the Islands. In her studio, a converted garage atop a steep driveway, you'll see various works in progress; her residence is filled with completed works.

Banyan Arts, Box 692, Kailua; 261-6696. Original silkscreen posters and limited edition serigraphs by two artists--Elly Tepper and Mary Jerome--and master printmaker Ken Keefe; by appointment.

In a strong, graphic style that resembles woodcuts, artist Elly Tepper, a teacher of Hawaiian language and studies, depicts aspects of Hawaiian culture and life-- people playing the ukulele, dancing the hula, paddling outrigger canoes.

Nature is Mary Jerome's inspiration; her prints convey Hawaii's clouds, mountains, and sea in soft, transparent colors and billowy lines.

The artists' home is their gallery. They'll also explain equipment and techniques for print-making.

Waianae

Bakutis's Pokai Pottery, 86-098 Pokai Bay St., Waianae; 696-3878, raku and stoneware, by appointment.

What started as a hobby for Gail and Bunky Bakutis in 1969 has since become a thriving family business. An open, airy gallery facing Lualualei Beach forms most of the downstairs of their house; here, the two potters display their vases and other works. She builds "architectural' post of clay slabs, while he makes wheel-thrown pots (see photograph above).

This month especially, visitors might get to watch the artists at wheel or kiln, or lining the raku pit with clean-burning banana leaves that blend handsome smoke patterns into a pot's finish.

Prices range from $5 for a small ceramic box to $550 for a large sculptural piece. The Bakutises also sell at galleries on Kauai, Maui, and the Big Island, and at eight galleries on Oahu.

Hale-O-Hanale, Box 343, Waianae; 696-8171; wood carvings, by appointment.

A sculptor-carver whose works reflect his Hawaiian heritage, Henry Hopfe creates furniture, boxes, and jewelry, as well as art and artifacts representing old Hawaiian culture--in stone, native woods such as koa and monkeypod, and coral. A studio in a converted garage next to his house is stuffed to the ceiling with woods in all shapes and sizes. A small room next door serves as display space.