Kainoa Gruspe
My experience being raised in the overthrown kingdom of Hawaiʻi currently occupied and governed by the United States of America is central to my understanding of self and place. Sometimes painting, sometimes sculpture, sometimes fishing, my art practice has become what I can best describe as “whatever needs to get done.” I try to look at and digest the current and historical interactions of the location I find myself in and find ways I can contribute with my work. What I am looking for in my work is a sense of real life, and an exploration of how that has been understood. Wherever possible, I try to unify “art” with the rest of life, in either direction. I am often looking at scientific, religious and philosophical efforts to describe and understand reality, as well as traditional craft practices and their interaction/ friction with current capitalist/imperial systems. My practice is rooted in exploring the possibilities within material culture, examining how objects, textures, traditions, and techniques can be vessels that hold meaning. This might be best summed up in the form of a list of recent ingredients: pigeon feather, invasive guava wood, hard work, pōhaku, petty theft, coconut husk, skin of the umaumalei fish, the golf course fence, douglas fir-plywood, sand taken from Waiʻanae to build Waikīkī.
I was raised in Waiau and then Mānoa and now live in Waiau again. I went to certain schools for an art education but am now learning that my education comes from a much larger list, some of which you can find here in no particular order:
Mom Dad the reef Amber AuntyMeleanna craftinamerica AuntyMaile RT southeastlondon AnthonyWatson Donnie gourdbanjo Emma Pu’uhonuaSociety Kainani Tiffany keeaumokumcdonalds HanuBoy Alec Noa UncleUmi Reem Junyi AlvaroBarrington ballpointpens Lise theloʻi Vincent Juvana Vico AuntyPuamana Cody thrashermagazine Tony my students at hālawacorrectionalfacility Peter citymill ChrisWindnagle wood Lawrence thedump
I have successfully gone two years without ordering anything from Amazon and everything is still okay.
