MEDIA RELEASE
Hawaii’s Woodshow, the 18th annual statewide Juried Woodworking Show of the Hawaii Forest Industry Association (HFIA), is open through Sunday, April 11 at the Honolulu Academy of Arts Academy Art Center. HFIA has announced winners in the 2010 exhibition.
Best of Show honors went to Ricardo Vasquez for his piece “Holomoku” depicting a Hawaiian canoe sail artfully and intricately made from mango, koa, and bamboo. The word Holomoku means “to sail.” Other awards were as follows:
* First Place Furniture – Marcus Castaing – “Rising Again”
* First Place Novice – Nicole Keola Gomes – Sideboard
* First Place Open – Cliff Johns – “Expecting a Tsunami”
* First Place Sculpture – Scott Hare – “Alien Flora”
* First Place Turning – Pat Kramer – “Cycles”
* Student Awards – Joshua Cole, Rachel Dunn, Brianna Abregano
* Honorable Mention – Francisco Clemente – “Ko Ko Koa”
* Honorable Mention – Mats Fogelvik – “The Lava Fountain”
* Honorable Mention – J. Kelly Dunn – “Hau Brothers”
* Honorable Mention – Timothy Allen Shafto – “Curly Koa Uprising”
* Honorable Mention – David Reisland – “Ku”
* Honorable Mention – Edwin Ikeda – “Whale”
* Award of Excellence – R.W. Butts – “Olive Kumulipo”
* Kent Award – Brianna Abregano – “Paddle” (Recognizes and encourages the most promising artist under18 years of age).
* Skolmen Award – Nicole Keola Gomes – Sideboard (Rewards creative promotion of woods from lesser-known, non-native trees).
“The judges are always challenged to narrow down their selection of winners and this year’s show entries were particularly remarkable,” said HFIA Executive Director Heather Gallo. “We were pleased by the number of student and novice entries along with museum-quality works by some of Hawaii’s finest woodworkers.”
New to the 2010 Woodshow was the “Koa: Standing the Test of Time” award presented by Hawaii State Department of Agriculture Chairwoman Sandra Lee Kunimoto to Aina Mauna Legacy Program – Hookuleana LLC and Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL).
“DHHL is looking at its responsibility as a land manager not just to provide homes to its beneficiaries, but also to provide for the management and protection of native lands for the future,” Gallo said. “Because DHHL is looking beyond housing into a more holistic approach for communities and land management by creating a sustainable plan for the area and sustainable koa forestry opportunities, we were pleased to present the Aina Mauna Legacy Program this award.”
Only Hawaiian-grown wood works of art are displayed in Hawaii’s Woodshow. The Show is designed to strengthen appreciation for the artists’ work and encourage sustainable forestry through the planting of native and non-native trees.
Hawaii’s Woodshow doors are open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays through April 11. There is no charge for admission, however donations are encouraged to help HFIA in its efforts to protect Hawaii’s forest lands.
Show sponsors include Kamehameha Schools, the City & County of Honolulu, Hawaii Tourism Authority, Hawaii Department of Agriculture, Department of Forestry and Wildlife, and Woodcraft Hawaii as well as many other contributors and a dedicated team of volunteers lead by Woodshow Coordinator Marian Yasuda.
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