once upon an ipu

ipu hale

yet another traditional hawaiian art form is receiving some love in the press far beyond the ocean borders of the islands. case in point: the latest issue of craft to hit the newsstand features the big island's ipu hale which is part of a tiny community of local artists reviving an ancient hawaiian technique of decorating the humble gourd. while most of us are familiar with the curves (and beats) of the ipu, the decorative process is not well known outside the world of historians and artisans and so a quick overview to get you up to speed.

back in the day when the ni'ihau method was practiced, intricate designs were created by carving a relief into the gourd's skin which would then be filled with coffee to slowly dye the gourd from the inside out. time was allowed to take its course and, after patiently waiting for weeks or months on end, the design would eventually emerge. since the natural dye reacted differently with each specimen, a bit of alchemy occurred which resulted in the creation of a one of kind vessel.

and, with modern day artisans looking to the past for inspiration, traditional polynesian patterns à la tatau and tapa designs are making a return to elevate the ipu from a swap meet souvenir to something that reconnects us to a once forgotten art form.

elroy juan & georgia sartoris

alas, ipu hale is without a website so you will have to make your way to holualoa to admire their craftsmanship in person. while on the big island, you may also want to stop by the volcano art center and check out the work of noted gourd artists elroy juan & georgia sartoris who create hue wai pawehe (aka decorated water gourds).

learn more about this fascinating process along with a step-by-step tutorial in this excerpt from craft.