kokua japan

hope heal love * aloha for japan

forgive me for my absence. i have been wrestling with writing about style and design finds which seem a little frivolous right now. half my family tree is japanese and even though my great-grandparents left for hawaii's shores over 100 years ago, the coverage of the devastation following the earthquake and tsunami continue to be heartbreaking.

then yesterday i received a note from jennifer of kinohi designs about a small project to send kokua to japan. the first offering from her hope love heal: a love letter to japan series is a sweet button debuting at eden in love this weekend. online ordering is in the works and i will be sharing the next two releases as soon as they say hello. {$2 a button with 100% of the proceeds benefitting the red cross and unicef}.

inspired by jen's generosity, i remembered how many local designers also share a connection to japan, and how the interweb bands together when the world is touched by tragedy. my evening and morning have been spent scouring all my sources for more goodness from hawaii and beyond to help japan. one of my favorites is the aloha for japan tee which is already on backorder. find yours at aloha army, barefoot league, butigroove, fitted hawaii & in4mation. {$20 with all the profits supporting relief efforts in japan}

more kama'aina offerings + a sampling of designs from around the world after the jump.

maui raised, la-based artist edwin ushiro will be contributing original artwork to this weekend's giant robot show to help unicef's efforts with keiki survivors of the earthquake.

share the love

lisa from modern philosophy created a capsule collection of handmade adornment just for japan. {$12 to $41 with 100% of the proceeds going to the red cross}

help japan scout books

portland's scout books has printed up a special edition help japan notebook with 100% of the profits benefitting mercy corps work in japan. {$15 for a set of three + free shipping on u.s. orders}

thinking of home

brooklyn artist & tokyo native naoko stoop will be donating $10 to the red cross from each sale of her sweet thinking of home print. {via books, paper, scissors}

help japan

weiden+kennedy's help japan offering is spare and to the point. {$25 with all net profits going to the red cross; via pinterest}

lotus * waves

i love the hopefulness and simple beauty found in designer linda yuki nakanishi's japan earthquake series. {various sizes; 100% of profits will benefit the canadian red cross's relief efforts in japan}

cherry blossom heart

along with the delicate design of the cherry blossom heart from this paper ship in north carolina who also whipped up a thousand paper cranes print. {$20 with 90% of proceeds benefitting the salvation army}

alas, this is not for sale but illustrator natascha rosenberg's sweet pair quietly expresses how so many of us feel. {via pinterest}

and, h|h will be participating in for japan with love's day of silence tomorrow which means an early edition of the aloha friday scoop will be posted later tonight.

have you happened across more design kokua to help our friends in japan? if so, please do share!

p.s. good magazine has also posted a helpful roundup of charity organizations deserving of your donation.

edwin ushiro: preceeding sunday

to counter imponderability

hello all! edwin ushiro recently sent a preview of his new show in the great northwest so if you call seattle home definitely make your way to belltown and the roq la rue gallery to check it out. for those who just discovered h|h this year (welcome welcome!), edwin is a mixed media artist from maui who now calls los angeles home. his muse still reaches back to childhood when chilling obake stories of creepy specters who haunt the islands from the land to the sea and all points in between were traded at sleepovers and over campfires.

a casual glance may only see carefree, innocent scenes of small kid time, but i like to think that the many layers worked into each piece act as an unspoken reminder that all is not as it seems. even though i spook easily, i always find edwin's depiction of childhood in hawaii comforting despite the whispers of grisly circumstances lurking beneath the surface. for the preceeding sunday show, kaena point's gateway to the spirit world (shown above) and a temptress apparition luring unsuspecting paniolos to their demise are among edwin's latest collection of local legends.

that said, the idea of passing by the most spine-tingling depiction on a daily basis is too much for my faint constitution to even consider (much to the chagrin of my mister who always seems to covet the scariest obake tale come to life), however more wistful remembrances of days gone by along with sweeter hawaiian myths do pop up every so often.

all signals configuring to a position . . .

tingling sensation of adorable reminiscentia . . .

the 1921 wall

a muffled concept of what we considered ubiquitous

isn't edwin's contribution to the lost underground art project fabulous? (lauren gregg's charlie is also quite delightful, btw.) the piece was already sold by the time it crossed my radar, but happy to see a local artist get some love from one of the islands' all-time favorite tv series filmed in hawaii!

a few pieces from edwin's seattle show (co-starring yoskay yamamoto) already have a red dot, however purchasing inquiries by phone or email are welcome.

• show dates: now to sun, oct 10th
• where: roq la rue gallery, 2312 2nd avenue, seattle
• gallery hours: wed to sat, 1p to 6p & by appointment

the return of mr. ushiro

if you call la home or find yourself in so/cal in the next few weeks, hele over to lebasse projects which is hosting a new solo exhibit from maui-born artist edwin ushiro. since his artwork was featured last summer, edwin's fan base has continued to flourish with appearances at comic-con and art amsterdam filling his 2009 schedule.

one of the reasons to crush on edwin's artwork is his fascinating perspective of growing up in hawaii which he continues to explore in softly encompassing the womb. the mixed media moments from childhood skip from ethereal reflections of sweeter memories to reconstructed obake tales that hint of a more ominous side of the islands unfamiliar to tourists on holiday but whispered on playgrounds and across kama'aina campfires since small kid time.

time therefore remained idle

after its given all you wanted

i drift away silently

while hawaii continues to wait for an exhibit of its own, all are welcome to the opening reception tomorrow evening in la which will also feature the work of japanese artist ryuichi ogino. hope to see you there!

• when: sat, sep 12th - 7p to 10p
• where: lebasse projects, 6023 washington blvd, culver city
• show dates: sat, sep 12th to sat, oct 3rd
• gallery hours: wed to sat, 11a to 6p

p.s. click over to daily du jour at 3p pst (12p hst) today for a live streaming interview with edwin.

kilauea confidential

birth of the unreckoning

since my fella is a fan of both lava and local boy slash la-based artist edwin ushiro, i suspect he will be coveting edwin's latest piece, birth of the unreckoning, which paper tiger has just released as a limited edition print.

the offering to madame pele, inspired by the whispered tales of big island sightings of the goddess of fire, sports a reasonable price tag ($100) considering its size (12x12) and that edwin has signed and numbered each print.

of course, with only 25 prints to go around you best hele over to paper tiger's online shop for a chance to add one to your personal gallery.

the haunted works of edwin ushiro

when we met * since time only meant . . .

a few weeks ago, i stumbled upon a collection of artwork in an online gallery and instantly felt a connection to the small kid time escapades and plantation town backdrops of one artist who i just knew had to be from hawaii.

it turns out that edwin ushiro, the la-based artist behind the canvas, is a local boy who grew up on maui and left for the mainland to study illustration at pasadena's art center college of design. after graduation, he joined the ranks of kama'aina working behind the scenes in hollywood (storyboard artist, visual effects consultant) while continuing to use a mix of mediums to recreate scenes evocative of many an island childhood.

art always becomes a bit more intriguing when you discover the maker's perspective and edwin's work is a yet another reminder that looks can be deceiving if the viewer doesn't go beyond the first glance. a few clicks around his website revealed that just below the surface of these seemingly idyllic paintings lay the spooky worlds whispered about around campfires and sleepovers. those same obake stories that chill(ed) many of us to the bone sparked edwin's fascination with the paranormal which have become the inspiration behind many of his pieces.

when everything really mattered

edwin's fan base has grown after only a few appearances at galleries around los angeles and his newest work will make its debut at his solo exhibit, while tides guide you back home, at project:gallery in culver city this weekend.

red dots seem to be a familiar sight when edwin's art hits the market, however his work seems to have somehow slipped under the radar of the hawaii art scene. hopefully, that will be remedied soon but until then a few clicks will allow you to take a peek here - buy prints here - and order wallpaper here (all the way from spain so beware the exchange rate).

so/cal readers are invited to stop by project:gallery and join edwin at the opening reception saturday evening. hope to see you there!

• when: sat, jul 12th - 7p to 10p
• where: 8545 washington blvd, culver city
• show dates: sat, jul 12th - sat, aug, 9th

p.s. stay in the loop via edwin's blog.