Local Color
Sunday, July 15, 2001
What a difference a year makes. Last year, the Artists of Hawaii exhibition at the Honolulu of Academy of Arts was mostly a good, old-fashioned art show filled with respectable paintings. This year, the show is nothing like that. New Eyes
A new juror each year lends
fresh insight to 'Artists of Hawaii'There are paintings to be sure, and respectable paintings in the good, old-fashioned realistic and abstract traditions. But far fewer paintings, and the the overall look of the exhibition this year is edgy and experimental, dominated by sculptures, installations and other three-dimensional work.
"Yes, there is a different tenor to the artworks this year," says Jennifer Saville, curator of Western art and project director for the annual juried exhibit.
"To me, the difference really brings out the beauty of having different jurors - with a different pair of eyes, different taste, different attitude, different background - to select the entries," she says.
Place: Honolulu Academy of Arts, 900 S. Beretania St. ARTISTS OF HAWAI'I 2001
Time: 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays to Saturdays, 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays, opens Thursday and runs through Aug. 26
Admission: $7, $4 for seniors, students and military, free to members and children 12 and under, free the first Wednesday of the month
Call: 532-8700
Each year the academy invites a juror from outside Hawaii to keep the jurying impartial and fresh, and in each of the 51 years there have been surprises and the discovery of promising artists.
Last year, the juror was California painter Wayne Thiebaud, whose selections reflected his interests in paintings. This year the juror was Arnold Lehman, director of the Brooklyn Museum of Art, which was the center of national debate over an unorthodox exhibit last year that included a painting of a black Madonna made with elephant dung and cross sections of a preserved cow.
Rest assured that the Artists of Hawaii exhibit is tame compared to the Brooklyn display. But there is some nudity and sexually charged photographs (accompanied by warnings to parents) in the Hawaii show.
"Tough not safe" was one of the guidelines Lehman used to select the Hawaii entries. He looked for strength and emotion in the work, he said, choosing both polished and professional pieces as well as work that appears raw and amateurish.
From more than 1,000 entries submitted by 439 artists, Lehman chose 85 works by 75 artists. The chosen artists will be honored at a reception before the show is opened to the public.
Gardening Calendar
Suzanne Tswei's art column runs Sundays in Today.
You can write her at the Star-Bulletin,
500 Ala Moana, Suite 7-210, Honolulu, HI, 96813
or email stswei@starbulletin.com
