Category: print

Manaola’s Pewa design is his take on a classic wedge pattern found on many traditional Hawaiian textiles. The design is based on the fishtail repair found in traditional Hawaiian woodworking, which was used to prevent wood from splitting or to patch holes in broken calabashes.

For Manaola, this wedge-shaped pattern is symbolic of healing and the mending of wounds of the heart and mind. He places the Pewa print in a fluid, flowing formation as a visual metaphor for the passage of time, which is necessary for growth, understanding and wisdom.

The print takes on even a deeper meaning for Manaola, who believes that by mending one’s cultural past, one can shape an empowered future. Hawaiians, like many other indigenous peoples around the world, have endured spiritual, physical, political and cultural disruptions during the course of their history, making the symbolic healing of the pewa of paramount importance to reconnecting with the past to survive in the modern world.

 

An avid canoe paddler, Manaola was inspired to create the ‘Āko‘ako‘a print one day as he sat in his wa‘a (canoe) and peered into the blue waters near his home in Kohala. As the wa‘a gently moved on the water, Manaola noticed the complexity and beauty of the intricate coral formations visible below him. As he continued to gaze into the sea, the endless variation of the flourishing coral bed opened up before his eyes. The Kumulipo—an ancient Hawaiian creation chant that demonstrates a unique Hawaiian acknowledgement and interpretation of evolution—tells us that coral organisms were some of the earliest creatures to come into existence, marking their importance in Hawai‘i’s ancestral history.

The small shapes of coral species also represent the act of creation itself, symbolically representing the kohe, or the birthing canal of a woman, which is the literal avenue through which new life comes into the world. The ‘Āko‘ako‘a print also honors Haumea, the goddess of fertility, who gives birth to new lands and new life.

Inspired by the harbor flats from Pāhonu to Māhukona on the Kohala coast of Hawai‘i Island, the Niho Kū pattern is comprised of a set of prints based on the jagged lava rock formations that jut from the sea. As a child, Manaola would paddle along this coastline, and the rugged landscape was a familiar site for the emerging artist. The receding tide displays tooth-shaped rocks, eroded through time by the power of the ocean, reminding Manaola of the sharp teeth of the manō (shark).

The first print in the pattern is called Niho ‘Ai Kalakala, and represents the constant sharpening of a shark’s teeth during the course of its long life. The second print, Nihomanō, refers to the shark-infested waters of Pelekane Bay. The final print, Niho Kū, or “standing shark tooth,” is based on a traditional design found in Hawaiian artwork. Though it may appear to be a basic triangular formation, its essence is tied to a deeper significance within the sacred geometry of traditional Hawaiian thought.

In ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i, “manaola” means “life force.” The designer represents the ‘ūwila, or lightning bolt, as a physical representation of this life force, embodying the strength and raw power of nature. When printed in repetition, the ‘Ūwila print serves as a Hawaiian take on the houndstooth motif.

Manaola created the ‘Ūwila design as a symbol of protection for the wearer. In Hawaiian folklore, the goddess Pele possessed a magic pāʻū ‘ūwila (lightning skirt), which could shield the wearer from dark or negative forces, and leant the skirt to her sister, Hi‘iakaikapoliopele, so that she might journey safely. The designer intended this print to provide the wearer with symbolic protection and the strength to face life’s challenges.