“finding our way” 🌊
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here’s another ode to the women of Oceania! This time with a focus on wayfinding. The woman at the bottom is holding a mattang (Marshallese stick chart) and wearing a Palauan tattoo. The woman in the middle is wearing a taulima (Samoan arm band tattoo). The woman at the top is wearing a tattoo intended to emulate those worn by Mekeo women of PNG and holding a paddle emulating those used in the sepik river. 💜 it was fun to try out a different style of art than I usually do!
“of the same water” 🌊
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This piece was inspired by attending festpac and getting to see the diversity and similarities between the regions of our ocean. It was so beautiful to connect with islanders all across the pacific, and I wanted to create a piece as a love letter to Pacific Islander women who inspire me, teach me, and love me. The woman at the top represents Melanesia— she is wearing her hair in the traditional Fijian buiniga and she is also wearing veiqia, traditional Fijian markings worn by women. I also gave her a pair of earrings inspired by the Solomon Islands shell money which I really love because it’s very similar to chamorro jewelry. The woman representing micronesia is wearing the traditional Bwilak markings worn by Marshallese women, as well as a ginger lei from Yap, which is my favorite style of lei in the pacific. The Polynesian woman is wearing a lei po’o and some Tahitian pearls, inspired by the mā’ohi women I’m so blessed to know! Island women, thank you for your love, your softness, your strength, your beauty, your laughter, your flaws, your kåhna, everything you are! I see you and love you 💓
masakåda | my anger is sacred
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this piece is a reclamation of the “angry/savage native woman” and celebrates the rage of the women who came before me. our anger is sacred, our anger is divine. my anger protects me and guides me towards my values. my anger demands justice and paves the way for a better future for my people. of course, we should not allow our anger to consume us. rather, we should listen to what it tells us about who we are.
New Episode! Kaiāulu: Rising Together! Four local artists share their findings through art — visualizing data, improving communication, and bridging the gap between different ways of knowing about climate action and adaptation in our communities.
Premiere Dates:
- TV on @hawaiinewsnow on K5 in Hawaiʻi: Sun May 10 & Sat May 16 6pm
- YouTube: Thurs May 21 @ 12pm HST
voiceofthesea.org
Episode webpage: seagrant.soest.hawaii.edu/kaiaulu
Mahalo Keisha Tanaka, Erin Voss, Gillian Dueñas, Benjamin Fairfield for sharing their art! Mahalo Udi Mandel, Beth Lenz, and Bill Unruh for coordination and mentorship.
@kahulimai@Terraqueous.territories@gilli.art@HI_Climate@benjamin.fairfield@hawaii_sea_grant@soest_uh@oceania_educators@hikanesa
Mark your calendars!!! New episode Kaiāulu: Rising Together!
2026 Artist Applications Due Friday, May 1st!
Learn more: climate.hawaii.gov/art
Application: https://forms.gle/RDD5ahuXojpuBDgt6
Episode Premiere Dates:
- TV on K5 in Hawaiʻi: Sun May 10 & Sat May 16 6pm
- YouTube: Thurs May 21 @ 12pm HST
voiceofthesea.org
For this exhibit, four local artists share their findings through art — visualizing data, improving communication, and bridging the gap between different ways of knowing about climate action and adaptation in our communities.
Kaiāulu is a project of the Hawaiʻi Climate Commission, and applications are now open for four 2026 artists. Each selected artist will be provided $7,000 to cover materials and travel to generate artwork that creatively engages with one or more topics included in the Climate Action Pathway. Applications from local artists of all media including painting, illustration, sculpture, ceramics, music, digital, videography, clothing and textiles, photography, and more are welcome!
@kahulimai@Terraqueous.territories@gilli.art@HI_Climate@benjamin.fairfield@hawaii_sea_grant@soest_uh@oceania_educators@hikanesa
Show me! Make me feel! How does climate action relate to my community?
Behind the scenes of our upcoming episode Kaiāulu: Rising Together! For this exhibit, four local artists share their findings through art — visualizing data, improving communication, and bridging the gap between different ways of knowing about climate action and adaptation in our communities.
Kaiāulu is a project of the Hawaiʻi Climate Commission, and applications are now open for four 2026 artists. Each selected artist will be provided $7,000 to cover materials and travel to generate artwork that creatively engages with one or more topics included in the Climate Action Pathway. Applications from local artists of all media including painting, illustration, sculpture, ceramics, music, digital, videography, clothing and textiles, photography, and more are welcome!
2026 Artist Applications Due May 1st.
Learn more: climate.hawaii.gov/art
Application: https://forms.gle/RDD5ahuXojpuBDgt6
Episode Premiere Dates:
- TV on K5 in Hawaiʻi: Sun May 10 & Sat May 16 6pm
- YouTube: Thurs May 21 @ 12pm HST
voiceofthesea.org
@kahulimai@Terraqueous.territories@gilli.art@HI_Climate@benjamin.fairfield@hawaii_sea_grant@soest_uh@oceania_educators@hikanesa
make sure to check out Ēwe Hānau o ka ‘Āina!! At Hō‘ikeākea gallery until June 20th. Such a deep privilege and honor to know these manaful haumāna 🧡 #paapono #hoopunana
Ancestors — official cover art by @gilli.art 🌊
(Releasing on: 04.22.26)
It’s been an absolute honor to work with the incredible Gillian Dueñas on this cover. If you’ve seen her work, you’ll know how much depth and oceanic power exists in it all. Storytelling is one of the practices from ancient times that we continue to this day that preserves culture, and it has many mediums; visual media being one.
Ancestors is a song about cultural identity and the responsibility to preserve cultural heritage, to relearn and preserve our stories, a task that has been passed on to us from our ancestors. As diaspora, we navigate new and different challenges, sail new oceans (metaphorically), and ride the waves of change; we take steps forward in new directions while always remembering those who came before us.
Mahalo, fa’afetai and si Yu’us ma’åse @gilli.art for conveying this story visually, and for all your work to serve and empower our Pasefika people 🇬🇺💙🇼🇸
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Song snippet: Ancestors (04.22.26)
Artist: Akerei
Co-producer: @bradda.ash
Co-producer: @uppahpapa
Master: @seamajorseven
Composer: @akereimusic
Recorded: @creativenativeshi@okoa.productions
Publisher: @creativenativeshi
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#pasefika #polynesia #micronesia #melanesia #oceania
typhoon sinlaku 🌀
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I drew this up while anxiously following typhoon updates from here in ke aupuni hawai’i. from kona low storms hitting these islands, to cyclones vaianu and maila hitting fiji, solomon islands, papua new guinea, and aotearoa, and now super typhoon sinlaku heading for the mariånas after passing through chuuk, the impacts of climate change are being felt deeply all across our ocean.
this typhoon is named after sinlaku, the goddess of nature and breadfruit in kosrae. I was thinking about her as well as the matrilineal traditions of our islands in micronesia and our own female creator/goddess in låguas yan gåni, fu’una/fo’na. in this piece i was trying to emulate iconic art of the virgin mary as a reference to the ways that christianity/catholicism have disconnected us from traditional spirituality and as a way to remember that our people have always revered and respected women. I was also thinking about how our ancestors have weathered typhoons since time immemorial. because of climate change, typhoons and tropical storms are becoming more frequent and more severe. our peoples will continue to adapt and rebuild. destruction cannot happen if there is no life. despair cannot exist without hope.
you are heavy in my mind and heart, taotao mariånas. those of us in the diaspora will be here to help when the storm passes. 🧡
