Collections Spotlight with Ian Kuali’i

During the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown and through the reopening afterward, the Coe Center partnered with First American Art Magazine to present an interactive Zoom series in which Native artists discussed artworks in the Coe Collections. Collections Spotlight brought deep dives into objects from the Coe collection to the public from the artist’s perspective. These events were free and open to the public.

Ian Kuali’i is a multi-disciplinary self-taught artist of Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian)/Apache ancestry whose career spans more than two decades working in the forms of murals, large-scale cut-paper, prints, and site-specific installations.

While trying to simplify his technique as a graffiti writer, Ian discovered stenciling and realized that he appreciated the “cut” more than the spray, thus finding his preferred medium­—hand-cut paper. Over the past few years, Kuali’i has been in the process of transforming his art practice to include large-scale land art prayer installations.

In Hawaiian, Kava is actually Awa, which is a cultivated canoe plant (plants transported in canoes between islands by Polynesian peoples). Awa is used in ceremonies and sometimes is specific to chief’s families. Ian talks about the travel of Kava from the Pacific to the east. Kuali’i’ shares the design of his sleek Awa bowl, which is more designed for social drinking. He notes the benefits of Awa in healing addictions such as alcoholism. He notes the feet on the design of the Ava bowl, similar to larger versions he has seen for ceremony. People’s backs should not be to the Awa bowl, and there should be no negative words or energy around the bowl, as it relates to cultural practices and ceremonies. Ian talks more about the animal face on the bowl, which might be an animal deity. The six legs of the bowl may suggest Samoan influence.

This bowl is similar to Ian’s Awa bowl, but deeper. Ian notes the repairs done to the bowl, including the wood nails and different wood. The interior of the bowl appears damaged, which Kauli’i notes could be from food storage, causing insect burrowing. The natural wood is usually insect repellent, but the insects might eat food stored inside it was decaying.

He wonders if it was possibly left with food inside it for someone who passed. He talks about Hawaiian burial practices and how bowls of this type were used. Kuali’i mentions the book Nānā I Ke Kumu: Look to the Source by Mary Kawena Pukui as a reference.

When asked about the repair, he states that it is hard to tell who could have done it, considering the different cultures immersed in Hawaii, such as Japanese culture and knowledge of Japanese joinery techniques. He also mentions the book Hawaiian Cordage by Catherine C Summers and discusses that some traditional repairs to bowls were done with coconut cordage.

The repairs done on this bowl seem to be more traditional repairs, compared with the previous bowl. Kuali’I thinks the bowl is made from Milo or Koa wood and the butterfly repair work appears to be a different wood. This style of repair can be seen in various communities.

Kuali’I wonders if there is a lacquered finish, maybe a gloss finish. He also notes the adhesive seen through cracks on the interior of the bowl. Ian shares it is probably lacquered. He states that he uses kukui nut oil on his bowls. Others can use coconut or other materials. These types of bowls are used for storage usually in homes, sometimes in netted cordage.

Kuali’i talks about navigation and how these navigation charts would have been used. Sticks represent different currents, and shells represent different islands. They are together with cordage. He notes particular groups of islands in the top corner. Some crosspoints could represent certain patterns or dangers. He also talks about how this would be learned with star navigation.

Kuali’i notes that these maps are particularly important in Micronesian communities. They could be kept on land and then memorized for way finders/navigators on the sea. He talks about Mau Pialug, grandmaster navigator, Pialug is a major figure in the preservation of traditional wayfinding techniques. Kuali’I mentions the Polynesian Voyaging Society as a resource for learning more about star maps and navigation.