Hawaii’s Back yard
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi
HUI NOEAU
Hui Noeau's annual Christmas event is Maui's most lavish holiday bazaar featuring art activities and demonstrations, gifts, ornaments and a bakeshop to raise funds in support of the hui's mission to promote artistic expression.
Hui Noeau prepares
for Christmas
Center deals with wide range of stylesIt's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at Hui Noeau Visual Arts Center, where staffers are busy decking the halls for their biggest fund-raiser of the year. Every nook and cranny of Kaluanui -- the stately two-story, Mediterranean-style Makawao mansion that houses the Hui -- will be brimming with handmade gifts and decorations including ornaments, pillows, dolls, candles, soaps, toys, home furnishings, jams and cookies.
Christmas House also will feature hula performances; children's art activities; appearances by Santa; a cafˇ and bakeshop; jewelry-making, wreath-making and wrapping paper-making workshops; and ceramics, puppet-making and Christmas card screen-printing demonstrations. It is Maui's most lavish holiday bazaar.
"The wonderful thing is that the house is completely decorated," says Inger Tully, Hui Noeau's exhibits coordinator.
First Choice Night: 6 to 11 p.m. Thursday Christmas House
Where: Hui Noeau, 2841 Baldwin Ave. in Makawao
Tickets: $70 per person, including a buffet dinner, entertainment and the first opportunity to browse through Christmas House
Reservations: Contact Tannis Grimes by tomorrow by e-mailing tannisg@huinoeau.com or calling 808-572-6560, ext. 7.
Note: Display and sales continue from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Nov. 26, with admission of $3 per person. Children under 12 are admitted free."People love to see it that way. We always have a Christmas tree with handmade ornaments. The crafts are arranged in furniture from Maui stores, and the best part is you can take anything home with you!"
Proceeds from Christmas House support the Hui's mission "to encourage and promote the development of artistic expression and creativity in the individual and to stimulate a broader appreciation and understanding of the visual arts as a vital language in our culture."
A work of art in itself, Kaluanui was the centerpiece of a magnificent 10-acre estate owned by Maui sugar magnate Harry Baldwin and his wife, Ethel, who was a noted artist. Ethel founded a club in 1934, which often met at Kaluanui to paint, draw and discuss art. The club was named Hui Noeau -- "hui" meaning "organization" and noeau translating as "skillful, artistic, talented."
KALUANUI WAS an inspiring venue for the creative group. Designed by acclaimed island architect C.W. Dickey and built in 1917, it boasted views that stretched from the emerald slopes of Haleakala all the way down to the cobalt blue of the Pacific. Hibiscus, plumeria, palm trees, bird of paradise, lilies, orchids, bromeliads, and towering Norfolk and Cook pines thrived in the beautiful gardens that surrounded it.
In the 1950s, Kaluanui became the property of Maui Land & Pineapple Company whose president at the time, Colin Cameron, was the Baldwins' grandson. In 1976, Cameron arranged for the elegant mansion to be the home of the nonprofit Hui Noeau Visual Arts Center, which nurtures Ethel's love for the arts and her vision of establishing a place where they could flourish on Maui.
Each year, Maui's finest artists and craftspeople are invited to share their creations at Christmas House. Most of the items are priced between $10 and $50; perennial favorites are wreaths that are so spectacular "people come early to wait in line so they can have first choice," says Tully.
One year, Hui Noeau's marketing consultant Susan Hernandez joined seven other women on a hike across private land at the 7,000-foot elevation of Haleakala to collect materials for the wreaths.
"We gathered delicate bits of curly pine twigs, mosses and clippings of native shrubs," she recalls. "We pruned pine trees, clearing the overgrown road and following it into the mist. It was an amazing journey. We packed the bed of a pickup truck and trundled down the mountain to prepare for the next several days of wreath-making. That's what makes our wreaths so unique. And the ladies who make the wreaths are so talented; their wreaths are just gorgeous!"
HUI NOEAU'S FIRST board of directors and a handful of volunteers launched Christmas House in 1978. It began as a small one-day event, set up in the ceramics studio and Kaluanui's back yard. Over the years, the fair expanded in duration and size, spreading out into the garage, front lawn, side lawn and children's studio. Merchandise displays moved into the house when rain was a spoilsport too many times, but some of the entertainment and activities are still held outdoors.
This is Sandra Reynolds' first year as chairperson of Christmas House. "We started planning last December," she says. "Teamwork was very important, and everyone was very generous with their time and donations."
Her tireless efforts, along with those of more than 150 other volunteers, have resulted in a celebration that exudes all the cheer and excitement of Christmas, Hawaiian style.
"What I've enjoyed most is seeing this incredible 1917 estate transformed into a gala event where people can get into the spirit of the holidays," Reynolds said. "I admit I put a big dent in my shopping list at Christmas House; there are so many splendid items to choose from, and every year different artists and crafters participate."
For Reynolds, helping to stage Christmas House has been an added benefit. Smiling broadly, she says, "I get to experience the joy of making people happy!"
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CenterÕs exhibits, classes
deal with wide range of stylesHui Noeau Visual Arts Center is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily except major holidays. Throughout the year, the center offers classes for those ages 3 and older in a wide range of media including painting, drawing, sculpture, jewelry making, woodworking, photography, ceramics, printmaking, basketry, and glass and fiber art.
The Hui also brings in renowned artists from around the world to conduct workshops and give lectures and demonstrations. Visiting-artist programs are often enhanced with slide shows, films and panel discussions.
The hui's continually changing exhibits spotlight traditional, contemporary, local, national and international art by emerging and established artists.
Its gift shop is recognized for the quality and diversity of its locally made wares, including books, jewelry, cards, ceramics, prints and paintings.
Guided tours of the hui's facilities, grounds and exhibits are free, but they must be arranged in advance.
There are fees for classes; call the hui or visit its Web site at www.huinoeau.com.
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based free-lance writer
and Society of American Travel Writers award winner.
