Pacific Arts: The Journal of the Pacific Arts Association

This dialogue between Andre Perez and J. Kēhaulani Kauanui explores the recent revitalization of Hawaiian wood carving through two recent projects Perez had a leadership role in. Perez is founder and project director of Hui Kālai Kiʻi o Kūpāʻaikeʻe, a carving apprenticeship program based in Waiawa, Oʻahu, Hawai‘i. In 2025, he co-curated, with Hawaiian artist Kaili Chun, the exhibition Ho‘okāhi ka ‘Ilau Like Ana—Wield the Paddles Together at Gallery ‘Iolani at Windward Community College. For the show, Perez and Chun selected canoe paddles made in the Pacific carving village that Perez organized for the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC) in 2024. In the FestPAC carving village, hosted by Bishop Museum, master carvers from various Pacific nations created large wooden canoe-steering paddles (hoe uli). In this discussion, Perez and Kauanui cover a range of issues related to the traditional Hawaiian practice of carving, including the cultural politics of Indigenous revitalization.