Diamond Head Revisited

Every year the shower trees at Kapi'olani Park, in front of Diamond Head Crater on O'ahu, burst into an amazing display of pink and yellow blossoms. I've been lucky enough to be staying on the island on several occasions and have done numerous paintings of the subject. At my 40th Punahou Reunion, I showed a big 3' x 7' version on linen canvas which I sold to one of my classmates, Bonnie Murphie, to hang in her new condo right across the street from all the flowering trees. Just for fun, and as a reference for another classmate who might order a new painting, here is a group of paintings that I did about ten years ago.

Crane Invasion and other stories

My dear friend Nikko Marott started folding cranes a couple of months ago, as a form of loving-kindness meditation. With each origami piece he sent out a prayer for all beings to be at peace and be free from pain. I love origami myself and of course I love color and design. So I got the idea of surprising Nikko with a pile of big origami papers that were printed with my Hawaiian Kapa linoleum blocks. This turned out to be enormously fun, since as the paper folds against itself numerous new and unexpected design combinations emerge, much like a kaleidoscope. Each bird became a one-person, one-time-only art experience, unpredictable, and never to be repeated.

Soon the house was filled with cranes, and Nikko made me laugh by making up stories about the crane invasion and lining them up in different arrangements. This project turned into a 1000 Crane installation at the Wailoa Art Center this month, as a part of the group show I'm in called "The Nature of Things," available to view until July 28.

Nikko is now in Hilo Medical Center with badly metastasized cancer, and he may or may not survive much longer. The wonderful thing is that he had, in his typical way, an idea to help other people by making the cranes a fundraiser for the Hospice of Hilo. Each strand of cranes is available for purchase and represents a donation to this very worthy organization. When the Wailoa show comes down, the cranes will be available at the gallery.

July will be an exciting month for art here in our corner of the Big Island. The gallery will open on Friday July 2 in the evening, to honor our new artists. The next friday I'll be at the Wailoa Center helping to host the opening of our group show organized by Patti Pease Johnson, with a group of five local artists showing art inspired by nature. And down at Kalani Honua Retreat Center, a vibrant art festival is being organized by Richard Koob and our own Tuko Fujisaki, to celebrate the many artforms and artists working in the Puna District.

Four New Painters at the Gallery!

We welcome our new painters Deborah Beaver, Sonya Stanchfield, David Hubbard, and Leslie Sears! I'll post more about each one but for now here's a little sample of the fresh styles to be seen at the gallery. As always, each artist takes a shift at the gallery so when you wander in you're sure to encounter some creative energy.

Emily Herb joins our gallery

The wonderful pottery of Emily Herb has been added to our gallery. She lends her vision of native birds to make beautiful and functional art. Please come take a look in person!

We Survived Merrie Monarch

I'm typing this blog entry one-handedly since I just had a surgery to repair my poor ol' rotator cuff (shoulder joint) which finally broke down after years of artistic over-use. Fortunately my friends Alaina and Gheerling are letting me recuperate for the weekend at their rented house in Lanikai!

Merrie Monarch week was exhausting. For the first time we got a booth at the big craft fair, so not only did we have to create and occupy the booth, but we had to fill it with artworks! I spent a great deal of time with Tuko and Cosette printing new pareos and tanktops with tapa and petroglyph motifs.

Tuko outdid herself designing our new rack card, which includes a map showing our location in the grand scheme of downtown Hilo!

Opihikao Evenings

I took a long time off from painting in my usual haunts along the Red Road (Puna Coastal Highway 137). This was partly because I injured my shoulder, and partly just out of tedium. I thought I was bored with the subject matter. But really it is beautiful to be out in the sea breeze, with the sunlight creating an ever-changing blaze of colors in the trees and on the rocks. Today Tuko and I joined Abby Rabinowitz, a painter from California who is looking at some property in the neighborhood. I've been working into a blue painting that I started many months ago. Waiting so long to pick it up again makes it very hard as the palm fronds all change position, and the ocean tide and waves change a lot too. In particular the drought has thinned out the palm foliage and made it a lot browner.

Paintings and Prints by Arthur Johnsen

I'm posting some very casual shots of my current works so my dear friend in Alaska can see what's available. This is not everything I have available now, just things that exemplify the color of the islands with an eye to what would help an Alaskan get through a long cold winter! Many of these paintings and prints were hung for the last two months at the Mayor's office in Hilo.