E Ulu Nā Muʻo Hala

E Ulu Nā Muʻo Hala (to foster the new growth of hala) This webpage is funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and curated by Papahana Kuoala. The purpose of the E Ulu Nā Muʻo Hala webpage is to provide information on hala and lauhala and to showcase an assortment of treasures found within various museums in Hawaiʻi, the Pacific, and beyond.

This IMLS grant assists Papahana Kuaolaʻs goal to empower people of all ages and backgrounds through experiential and cross-disciplinary learning and discovery. Through our mission and vision, Papahana Kuaola strives to reconnect our people with ʻāina through placed-based experiential learning of Hawaiian cultural skills, knowledge, and perspectives; including the understanding and application of cultural practices and content and a deepened emotional connection to Hawaiian culture and the ancestral land that sustains us.

EVENTS

COMMUNITY EVENT

(MORE INFO COMING SOON)

NĀ KUMU HALA MAKAMAE (Treasured Hala Teachers)

These are a few treasured kumu lauhala of Hawaiʻi. Future updates will include a biography and recorded interviews.

MARCIA OMURA

MARGARETT LOVETT

(KAUAʻI)

PŌHAKU KAHOOHANOHANO

(MAUI)

GWEN KAMISUGI

IPOLANI VAUGHAN

Keoua Nelsen

Keoua Nelsen creates contemporary and functional woven pieces of the hala leaf from the pūhala; incorporating styles that are timeless yet push the boundaries of the customary. He continues to perpetuate traditional practices of weaving however not limit where styling is concerned.

Keoua currently experiments with the styling of the hats – reviving styles of yesteryear traditional, those learned from our Maori cousins, and creative styling to bring to life appropriate yet timeless functional pieces of wearable art.

Keoua’s mission is to educate and perpetuate a lauhala weaving lifestyle for future generations, and to bridge the gap between customary and traditional practices of his kūpuna to modern contemporary times.