3 Kaua‘i arts education programs each awarded $8K from new statewide initiative

Three Kaua‘i arts education programs are among 10 throughout Hawai‘i awarded a portion of more than $72,000 from the Hawai‘i Community Foundation’s new Museum Without Walls Arts Education Initiative.

The initiative is a collaborative effort with the Hawai‘i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts and dedicated to making arts education accessible to communities that face barriers and challenges in accessing these resources.

The Kaua‘i grantees are:

• The Boys & Girls Club of Hawai‘i – Kapa‘a Clubhouse received $8,000 for its “5, 6, 7, Create” residency. The program will meet twice a week for 5 weeks during the Boys and Girls Club’s Summer Intersession. Participants will collaborate to create a narrative story and choreography inspired by discussions around the art piece “Pondering the Truth” by Joey Chiarello.
• Kīlauea Neighborhood Association received $8,000 for its “Mo‘oleleo Mural Magic” residency involving up to 30 community members of all ages. Participants will design and create a collaborative mural in the heart of Kīlauea, drawing inspiration from selected artworks and the local culture, history and sense of place. The project will include field trips for a local school and community workdays to help with the mural’s creation. It will culminate with a celebratory gathering, where the mural is unveiled and participants can share their experiences and the mural’s significance with the community.
• Alakaʻi O Kauaʻi Charter School in Kōloa was granted $8,000 for its “Rhythmscapes: Creating Harmony Through Motion Derived from Art” residency. Participants will learn community, including staff, students and their families. They will develop a performance art piece featuring dance and percussion, inspired by their interpretations of the artwork “Boy with Goldfish – For Sight” by John Thomas.

The Museum Without Walls Arts Education grants support diverse programs from April 1 to Dec. 31, offering arts education opportunities outside traditional school settings to participants from keiki to kūpuna.

Each of the 10 programs awarded is a partnership between a teaching artist from the Hawai‘i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts artistic teaching partners roster and a local community organization.

They also will focus on increasing engagement with and appreciation of works in the Art in Public Places Collection.

“This new pilot program provides an opportunity for experienced teaching artists to partner with community organizations to bring a diverse array of arts including dance, music, printmaking, painting and more through residencies designed to meet the needs and interests of community member,” said Hawai‘i Community Foundation program director Elise von Dohlen.

Karen Ewald, Hawai‘i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts executive director, said her organization is excited to expand its partnership with the Hawai‘i Community Foundation to support arts education in the community.

“With residencies focused on works of art in the Arts in Public Places Collection, we are reaching youth in rural communities, low-income seniors and others in the community who experience barriers to accessing arts education,” said Ewald.