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

sunny delight

so many of you follow h|h via the daily-ish email and your favorite feed reader that you may not have chanced upon the newest offering from maui's nina kuna designs which i learned about when nina sent along her latest ad (hooray for sponsors!). since website readers already seem to be taken with the hawaii nameplate necklace . . . well, it seemed only fair to let you in on nina's latest sparkle.

i am guessing most of us were introduced to the concept when sarah jessica parker rocked the now iconic carrie nameplate on the early days of sex & the city. there have been so many variations on the design since then, but hardly any island bling trickled down hawaii's way until now. the girly script is certainly a cheeky way for kama'aina to represent the 808 or is simply a playful souvenir to remember your hawaii holiday.

if you covet one to call your own, the nameplate can be ordered in either 14k gold or sterling silver for $52.

and, happy news, nina is also offering 15% off her online shop during the month of july and she will pick up the shipping tab!

• secret code: givealoha
• expires: sun, aug 1st

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.

new peeks: shop toast

hello again! you may have noticed that i took an impromptu break from blogging for a spring fling slash media fast. the opportunity to share lots of eco-friendly finds for earth day was hard to resist so . . . on we go!

it seems while i was disconnected from the online world that our friends at toast released a handful of new designs including these cheeky don't blow it hankies. yep, the old school handkerchief is making a comeback and toast's cotton offering is printed with a timely reminder (in water-based ink, natch) to save the planet by nixing disposable tissues in favor of a reusable alternative.

next up, toast's adorable take on the traditional carp streamers flown to celebrate children's day. boys and girls big and small (and certainly a few grown-ups) will get a kick out of the mini koinobori flags filled with blueberry or strawberry jelly beans.

the limited edition design ($3) is stocked in the online shop and in the toast showroom:

• where: 3434 waialae avenue, suite 3, kaimuki
• shop hours: m / w / f / sat - 12p to 6p

hawaiian hotel gets rock'd

. . . hawaiian hotel . . .

with tourism in a slump, one can only suspect the peeps over at the hvcb are none too pleased about an snl skit featuring the rock, er, dwayne johnson who offered up quite the giggle this weekend.

definitely for locals only.