Anyone who has been to Lahaina on a weekend has surely seen the wonderful local art being displayed and sold “under the Banyan Tree”. The Banyan tree is quite a Lahaina landmark. It was planted in 1873 and now covers an area of some 75000 square feet. It would actually cover an even wider area but the city takes steps to limit it. The Banyan tree drops aerial roots to develop supports for its massively wide ever extending branches. The city trims its branches as well as its new aerial roots to prevent them from reaching in the ground. This keeps the tree contained to the city block it is on.
Lahaina has had a very active artist community for many years that displays their creations in some of the many galleries in Lahaina, as well as under the Banyan tree. Besides some Maui artists’ work, the galleries tend to carry work of mainland artists as well as international artists. The work under the Banyan tree however is mostly created by island artists. Another key thing that distinguishes the art sold under the Banyan tree is that a portion of the proceeds goes towards supporting outreach programs for the under-privileged of Maui.
There are several organizations that share Banyan tree time. One of these is the Lahaina Arts Society (LAS) founded 45 years ago. LAS consists of about 75 Maui artists that produce all types of art…paintings (oil, watercolor, acrylics, pastels), original photography, jewelry, wood work and carvings, basket weavings, ceramics, and glass art, (and probably others that I’ve missed). LAS uses 20% of its gross proceeds to support the Maui Youth Art Outreach program administered by the Lahaina Art Association (LAA) for underprivileged youths (5-18) of Maui and Molokai. We are proud to announce that Sandy was juried into LAS last month for her work in glass art. (Since Sandy has not done any painting for over three years, her acrylic painting work was not eligible for consideration…it has to be within the past two years.)
Besides the Banyan tree, LAS has two galleries with member artists’ work that is refreshed on the first Monday of every month. The galleries are in the old Lahaina courthouse next to the Banyan tree. One is on the first floor. The other is the original Lahaina jail in the basement of the courthouse. It’s really quite pleasant down there…it is cool (in the temperature sense) being underground. And, I might add, some of the younger people that visit the jail have remarked that it is “cool” because it still has several of the original cells. In one of the cells, there is a wax figure of a wayward sailor from the 1800’s cooling his heels. The galleries are always open 7 days a week, 9-5, “manned” by artist volunteers.
As a new member, Sandy was required to put in several volunteer days in the gallery as well as several days under the Banyan tree for “mentoring” by established members. Since I will be working with her, we were allowed to split the time requirements between us. We wish to acknowledge the two artists that worked with us through the training period, specifically Scott Mead and Eric de Maria. Both do beautiful work. Scott is a photographer. His spectacular photographs are imprinted…no, actually infused…onto high grade aluminum that accentuates the dimensionality and vibrancy of the image. Eric is a custom cabinet maker who uses his skill and artistry to make a variety of beautiful wooden boxes and other items, using primarily Hawaiian indigenous wood. Besides being under the Banyan, their work is also on display in the LAS galleries.
We are pleased to say that as of 2 July, Sandy’s glass is also on display in the LAS galleries. Her pieces include platters and bowls of various sizes, cheese plates, clocks, as well as pendants and wine stoppers. The works on display are based on the three techniques she uses…pattern bar, drop pot, and mosaic. Those of you that visited us at Maui Open Studio (MOS) probably heard my tutorials on the techniques, so you know what I’m talking about. We will be “under the Banyan tree” the first weekend in August. Those of you that didn’t get the “pleasure” of my tutorial at MOS, come by in August, and I will be happy to go over them.
The photos attached to this blog are some of Sandy’s pieces in the LAS gallery. Beautiful…aren’t they!! If you get to Lahaina, check out the galleries. Besides Sandy’s glass, there is also the work of the other 70+ Maui artists. And, remember, if you find something to purchase there, 20% goes towards LAA’s Maui Youth Art Outreach program…an extremely good cause.
Aloha and Mahalo
Bob