Kenyatta Kelechi: Laulima Exhibit
Hawaiʻi-based artist Kenyatta Kelechi (b. 1990) uses the 19th-century technique of wet plate collodion photography to examine concepts of Indigenous identity and connection to family and place. The black-and-white prints and glass and aluminum plates in Laulima document and celebrate Kānaka ʻŌiwi (Native Hawaiian) cultural practitioners of today and their enduring respect and care for the ʻāina (land).
Used by outsiders to document Native peoples of Hawaiʻi during the early 1900s, Kelechi's use of this traditional technique engages with a complex history. Acknowledging this past, the artist makes a point to learn as much as he can about his subjects and offers them greater agency in the creative process by inviting them to suggest location, clothing, pose, and composition. Laulima (literally "many hands"), illustrates the give and take between artist and subject and contrasts with the traditional idea of the photographer as observer/documentarian. Instead, Kelechi's images express the desire to engage with and learn from community members while sharing equally with his subjects the authority of representation.
Hours: Monday & Tuesday: Closed, Wednesday-Thursday, Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Contact Phone: 808-532-8700
- Contact Organization: HOMA