CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM Shown are handpainted pendants ($29.50) featuring images of Buddha and Ganesha encased in silver and glass.

Annual world bazaar
offers holiday gifts

Holiday craft flair

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By Nadine Kam
nkam@starbulletin.com

You think you've got a lengthy gift list. Kathee Hoover starts shopping in July for about 4,000 people. That's the number of individuals who prefer a leisurely stroll through the Honolulu Academy of Arts' annual World Art Bazaar rather than enduring grueling treks to bring home treasures from nearly every continent.

"People have told me, 'You must have a wonderful collection,'" said Hoover, manager of the Academy Shop. "I actually don't collect anything. I hate to shop, personally, but I feel I'm an adoption agency and it's my responsibility to find good homes to all these objects. I bring them back for people here to appreciate, and that's what gives me joy and keeps me going."

She's been going now for 21 years, the entire time the annual holiday season folk art boutique has existed. The event started small, with a handful of folk items brought back from Peru by another museum staffer.

Rather than going globe-trotting, Hoover learned the drawbacks of direct importing, and now relies on about 200 professional importers for the wares, which this year will be housed in the Art Center at Linekona, where shoppers can spread out to touch, pick up and sniff any number of handmade objects, such as aromatic cinnamon and clove boxes starting at $9.95.

To decorate walls there are a number of masks from Africa and Asia. Other decorative items for the home include 25- to 30-year-old Chinese puppets for $129; Ivory Coast hand-painted barbershop signs selling for $65 to $98; and Noah bells from India, for $22.50, meant to chase evil spirits.

More personal items include polished cow horn bracelets for $49; felted wool handbags and wallets from Nepal for $8.95 to $24.50; and new this year, Korean papier-mâché sewing boxes that are traditionally given to brides, at $27.50.

Of course there is the usual array of Christmas ornaments, with paper crèches starting at $4.95 and glittery hanging dragons from Vietnam for $10.95.

Then there is jewelry such as glossy ulua, octopus or mahimahi pendants carved from cow bone by an artist in Western Samoa, priced at $75 to $125 for the fisherman on your list, and other wearable art including haori embellished with shibori, an intricate pattern of dye-resistant knots. The shibori jackets range in price from $87.50 to $145.

"I've seen wholesale shibori that cost more than that," said Hoover. "A full shibori in Japan sells for $10,000."

But it's long been the academy's mission to keep prices affordable, while introducing the public to artistic traditions that echo the museum's collections.

"It's getting harder to find objects that reflect traditional craftsmanship. Globalization makes it so much more attractive to take a job in manufacturing," Hoover said. "Handmade paper is inexpensive but it's still labor-intensive. It can take two or three months to make a piece of cloth.

"Our audience is people who like handmade things and who appreciate quality and value," Hoover said. "Those are the three things that guide my buying. I'm buying for the budget collector who appreciates beautiful things but doesn't have a lot of money to spend."

Even children will be able to pick out high-quality, handmade ornaments for about $5 for auntie and uncle or a favorite teacher.

Most of the items come with a piece of paper that explains their origin so it is an educational experience for both gift giver and recipient.

"We hope to be part of creating a market for people who choose to produce art in traditional ways," Hoover said. "I'm an environmentalist, and environmentalists are always concerned about globalization. It's an economic reality that if these artists don't have a market, they're going to find another way to put food on the table."

World Art Bazaar Where: Art Center at Linekona, 1111 Victoria St. Time: Opening tomorrow and continuing 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays to Saturdays, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 15 Admission: Free; parking is $1 with validation Call: 532-8700

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