A&E Wrap-Up: 4-7-17

Jazz in the Forest continues Saturday

Jazz in the Forest featuring Jeannine Guillory with Jean Pierre Thoma and The Jazztones

The 2017 Jazz in the Forest series continues with two performances on Saturday featuring Jeannine Guillory with Jean Pierre Thoma and The Jazztones.

Two shows will be offered, with a matinee at 4:30 p.m. and an evening performance at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for both shows are $18 for VAC members and $20 nonmembers.

An acclaimed vocalist in Hawaii, Guillory’s background in jazz, reggae, pop, rhythm and blues lend to a strong versatile sound and energy that gets her audience and peers alike to stand up and applaud her amazing voice and on stage presence.

She has studied jazz and classical music, as well as musical theater, and has performed at venues throughout Europe, South America and the United States.

She is also currently a popular mainstream vocalist with Pacific Fusion and Island Express throughout Kailua-Kona and along the Kohala Coast.

Hilo resident Thoma is a world-traveled professional musician on flute, saxophone clarinet and piano, with experience throughout America, France, Japan, India and Israel. He holds two master’s degrees in music, and has been a public and private school teacher as well as member of numerous jazz and classical ensembles, such as the Maui and Marin Symphonies.

Thoma is the leader of “The Jazztones” and “Raga Jazz;” a member of “Royal Kona Harp Ensemble” and “Volcano Trio;” and performer at Holy Cross Church and various restaurants and charity performances.

Bassist Matt Spencer is a long-time professional musician and multi-instrumentalist who has enjoyed a dynamic career primarily as a freelance musician, touring, recording and writing music with many different groups in many different styles. Playing bass, guitar and percussion, he covers a wide range of musical vocabulary from jazz to African, Brazilian to funk, and salsa to spiritual.

Spencer also has led his own 10-piece salsa band, was musical director for the Cleo Parker Robinson dance company, toured with the Motet, Tony Furtado, and Kyle Hollingsworth, and worked as a studio musician a dance accompanist for many dance schools around the country.

Guitarist Fred Hee is originally from Honolulu and now lives in Volcano. He began playing at age 17 while at Punahou School, and has been active ever since in America, Canada, and the Bahama Islands, including traveling with “Solid Gold”, and playing in Hawaii with numerous groups.

Tickets are available online at www.volcanoartcenter.org, at VAC’s Administration Office in Volcano Village and VAC Gallery in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The last day to purchase tickets online or at Volcano Art Center Gallery is today. After that, tickets will be sold at the door if they are not sold out.

Info: www.volcanoartcenter.org, 967-8222.

Laupahoehoe Music Festival Saturday

Laupahoehoe Community Public Charter School hosts the 12th annual Laupahoehoe Music Festival on Saturday at Laupahoehoe Point Beach Park. Proceeds go to school’s agricultural and technology programs.

This year’s Hawaiian-style event, which runs 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., features some of the island’s best music and hula entertainers including Diana Aki, Lori Lei’s Hula Studio, LCPCS Students, Average Joes, The Brown Boys and Kolea. There will also be food, games and handmade crafts.

Hui Kakoo O Laupahoehoe, the LCPCS nonprofit organization, will again offer a silent auction, with proceeds going to the school. The event is alcohol- and drug-free and coolers are not permitted.

Tickets are $15 in advance at Hilo Guitars, Basically Books, and Hilo Music Exchange in Hilo; M Sakado Store in Laupahoehoe; and at Laupahoehoe Community Public Charter School. Prices increase to $20 at the gate. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.laupahoehoemusicfestival.org. Children younger than age 10 enter free.

Info: www.laupahoehoemusicfestival.org.

ATT shares ‘No Strings Attached’ at library

The Kailua-Kona Public Library will host the Aloha Teen Theatre for “No Strings Attached” at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

Young people ages 6 to 19 years old are invited to learn a song and dance from “No Strings Attached,” an upcoming play based on “Pinocchio,” a book by Patrick Rainville Dorn with music and lyrics by Bill Francouer. Directed by Engela Edwards, the Aloha Teen Theatre is a free program that teaches leadership through performance.

Sponsored by Friends of the Libraries, Kona, this program is free to the public.

Info: 327-4327.

VAC exhibit highlights silk paintings, scarves

Volcano Art Center presents Anuenue, a fine art exhibition featuring silk paintings and scarves by Clytie Mead and glass by Hugh Jenkins and Stephanie Ross.

The exhibit, which opened April 1, is open to the public through May 14 at the center’s gallery within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The gallery is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The exhibit reflects upon the abundant spectrum of colors within Hawaii’s frequent anuenue and its many varying landscapes. The artists have focused on the colors presented within the life-giving blend of the sun and rain, while exploring very diverse media.

“Hugh Jenkins and Stephanie Ross explore rich pigments added to their glass vessels while Clytie Mead paints with colored dyes on silk, a much softer palette,” said Emily C. Weiss of Volcano Art Center Gallery. “The combination directly reflects our varying ānuenue, sometime so bold you can’t miss it, while other times so subtle they are hard to see.”

In conjunction with the exhibit, Mead will demonstrate silk painting on scarves on Mother’s Day, which is May 14. The free demonstration takes place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the lanai of the Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

Info: www.volcanoartcenter.org

Kona Town Hoe Down next weekend

The Kona Town Hoe Down returns April 15, taking Kona country for a second straight year.

The 5 to 8 p.m. event at King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel will feature live country music performed by the the Bobby Reno Show. It will open with a country music warm-up followed by the Bobby Reno Show, line dancing and a whiskey sampling at 6:30 p.m. A lucky number drawing will round out night.

A variety of food and libations will be available for purchase.

Tickets are $20 and are available at Kona Wine Market, Soundwave Music, Studio 55 Boutique, Kiernan Music, Tropics Tap House and King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel.

Info: www.konatownhoedown.com.

Film screenings

‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ to be screened

Naalehu Public Library screens a family movie at 3 p.m. every Tuesday at the facility in Ka’u.

The library shows a different family-friendly movie each week at no cost. This Tuesday, the library will screen “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

The 2016 fantasy film directed by David Yates is a spin-off of the Harry Potter film series, it was produced and written by J. K. Rowling, in her screenwriting debut, and inspired by her book of the same name.

Free popcorn will be served, while supplies last.

Info: 939-2442.

Film on ‘design thinking’ to be shown

“Design and Thinking” will be screened from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Donkey Mill Art Center.

The screening celebrates the organization’s annual Architecture Film Night. Hosting the event will be local architect Shaun Roth.

The film is directed by Mu-Ming Tsai and is a documentary exploring the idea of “design thinking”

The event is free and attendees are asked to bring a potluck item to share.

Info: www.dmac.org.

Workshops & classes

Parent/child workshop offered at DMAC

Emily Leucht of Imi Pono no ka Aina will lead a parent/child workshop “Block-Printed Wrapping Paper with Hawaii Nei” from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday at Donkey Mill Art Center.

Block Printing can be some of the most accessible and magical kind of printing, especially for youth. In this workshop, participants will use native plants and animals as inspiration to create stamps for block printing. They will learn elements of creating a design, hints for safe carving and print patterns that will highlight design.

Participants will leave the workshop with their creations, which can be used to also decorate fabric, gift cards, hats and more.

The workshop is in collaboration with the Hawaii Nei Art Contest and will be featuring our 2017 featured category of Kumulaau: Trees. Cost is $15. Please are asked pre-register.

Born and raised in Hilo, Leucht currently works as an education associate for Imi Pono no ka Aina, the education and outreach program for Three Mountain Alliance watershed partnership. She received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the California College of Arts and Crafts and a bachelor’s degree from the University of San Francisco.

She shifted her career path from design to environmental education after becoming a team leader for Hawaii Youth Conservation Core in 2009. She began working with Imi Pono in 2010, where she translates new experiences and knowledge into creative environmental education tools and programs. Examples include rainforest and reef “Watershed Friend” masks and an ohia lehua anatomy and pheonology activity.

In 2012, she began coordinating the annual Hawaii Nei Art Contest.

Info: www.donkeymillartcenter.org, 322-3362.

FOLK sponsors children’s poetry workshop

A children’s poetry workshop will be held from 3 to 4 p.m. on Wednesday at the Kailua-Kona Public Library.

Poetry is playing with words. Poetry is self-expression. Poetry is imaginative. Poetry is art. Poetry is fun. Join this workshop to draw out your inner poet, get creative with mixed media, and share your work with other poets. The focus of the April 12 event will be alliteration and sense poems.

Light refreshments will be served. Program is suitable for ages 7-12. Workshop is limited to the first 20 children. RSVP online (ticket reservations close April 11) or pick up a paper ticket 15 minutes before the workshop begins. Children must be accompanied by a parent or an adult caregiver.

This free program is sponsored by the Friends of the Libraries, Kona.

Young Architects Workshop 2017 offered

Shaun Roth and other local architects will lead a Young Architects Workshop 2017 at Donkey Mill Art Center.

In this workshop, slated from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 14, students will investigate daylighting and ventilation design concepts through drawing and model-building. Students will be challenged to transform a 20-by-25-by-9-foot room located in West Hawaii by bringing life to it with window and door openings.

The class is geared for ages 12 to 18 and the cost is $45.

Info/register: www.donkeymillartcenter.org.

Pease offers ‘Soft Pastel, Still Life’ workshop

Big Island artist Patti Pease Johnson will offer her “Soft Pastel Still Life” workshop from 9 a.m. to noon on April 22 at Volcano Art Center.

During the workshop, students will learn about the different types of pastels, different papers, fixing and mounting paper and on backing, and using newsprint to get the flow of arm movements to keep loose. Students will complete a 10-by-12-inch project.

Cost for the workshop is $45 for VAC members and $50 for nonmembers, in addition to a $10 supply fee. Beginner and intermediate artists are welcome.

Johnson’s artwork can be found at galleries and shops across the State and in collections around the world.

Info: www.volcanoartcenter.org.

Pastels workshop offered

Jin An Wong, an award winning artist, animator and filmmaker, will teach workshops on pastels and the techniques used to create a still-life painting on April 15 and 22 in South Kona.

The workshops will run from noon to 3 p.m. at the Society for Kona’s Education and Art in Honaunau.

The cost for both sessions is $50 for SKEA members and $60 for nonmembers; workshops may be taken separately and are $35 each day. An early-bird discount is available for those registering by Monday.

The price includes all supplies. Registration is required.

Info: 328-9392 or skea@hawaii.rr.com.

Calls for entries

Contestants sought for Hawaiian Idol

KBXtreme is seeking vocalists age 21 and older to take part in its 14th annual Hawaiian Idol Karaoke Contest.

Each spring, KBXtreme showcases the Big Island’s stars over four weekends in April. The first three weekends are semifinals and the final weekend, April 29, is the final show when the winner will be selected to take part in a national karaoke competition in Las Vegas paid for by KBXtreme. The winner will also receive $500 case, free airfare and a seven-night hotel stay.

Entrants must sign up at XFactor Karaoke Lounge in Kailua-Kona no later than today to take part in the contest. To sign up, entrants must also sing a song for the staff, who will determine if the person is “stage-ready.”

The chance to sign upto take part in the JR. Hawaiian Idol event has closed. In the contest, young people will have the opportunity to win professional mentoring, great prizes, and to perform on the Hawaiian Idol stage.

Info: kbxtreme.com

Artists sought for upcoming all-media juried exhibit

Hawaii Island Art Alliance invites all artists to submit work for Imagine 2017: Fine Art Expo, a new all-media juried exhibit that will take place during June at the Wailoa Center in Hilo.

The exhibit will open on June 2 with a reception and awards ceremony. Prizes will be awarded for first and second places, honorable mention and people’s choice. It will run through June 28.

“This is one of the few opportunities this year for our local artists to participate in a multimedia juried exhibit that will deal with all forms of subject matter from abstract art to representational art, including sculpture to fine art craft objects. This exhibit’s success will be up to the artist’s imagination and inspiration. We hope to make this exhibit an annual event for artists on the Big Island and possibly a future State wide exhibit. This first year will hopefully make a long lasting impression,” said Codie King, Wailoa Center’s coordinator.

Jonathan Goebel and Lonny Tomono are the jurors for Imagine 2017.

Goebel is an associate professor and master printer at the University of Hawaii at Hilo’s Art Department. He earned his master’s degree in of fine art from Texas Tech University, and his bachelor’s degree in art from the University of Southern Indiana. He is a nationally recognized artist and has received multiple awards for his intaglio work.

Tomono is recognized for his sculptural work that joins traditional Japanese woodcraft with the conceptual approach of contemporary art, blurring the line between utilitarian and modernist sculptural statements. He studied fine arts at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, sculpture at the San Francisco Art Institute, and sculpture and 3-D design at San Jose State University. He also served a five-year apprenticeship in Kyoto, Japan with a fifth-generation temple builder working on buildings designated national treasures. He has been in solo and group exhibitions in Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, San Jose and Kyoto.

Entries must be submitted no later than midnight May 3 online via https://artcall.org/calls. To enter, go to artcall.org and then to Imagine: 2017 Fine Art Expo located in the OPEN CALL FOR ENTRY page. Artists are limited to five submissions.

Artwork in all mediums will be accepted if created in the past two years and has not been in a previous juried exhibit. Artwork must be framed or be ready to install. No giclees reproduction prints or enhanced giclees of original art will be accepted.

Jurying will take place May 7 and artists will be notified on May 8. Accepted art will need to be brought to Wailoa Center on May 27.

The alliance will also offer a help day to artists on April 26 for those artists who need help with the submission process. Call Wailoa Center at 933-0416 by April 21 to set up an appointment for April 26.

Announcements

Blue Sea Artisans announce April featured artist

The Blue Sea Artisans Gallery featured artist for the month of April is fine art photographer Denise Bird.

Bird describes her work as a study of the creator through his creation. Her photographs have been seen and sold around the world and her work has been in state, national and international magazines, publications and television as well as online.

Bird travels a bit but concentrates most of her efforts on the Big Island where she lives with her husband and four furry kids. She also puts in a lot of hours each week volunteering with her church and welcomes requests for donation of her art for worthy causes in our community.

Bird’s “Big Island Collection” and “LDS Collection” are available as photographic prints, canvas giclees, and on metal plates where the images are actually fused to the metal with heat and pressure. The archival qualities of this unique process are unparalleled. Other collections of Bird’s work can be seen online at www.birdinparadise.com.

In celebration of Earth Day, Bird will be giving away at least one of her “Earth-friendly” images, printed on canvas. The drawing will be held on Earth Day, which is April 22, at noon. Participants can enter with any purchase at the Blue Sea Artisans Gallery or without purchase while Denise is in the gallery every Tuesday from 2 to 6 p.m.

The Blue Sea Artisans gallery is located in the Keauhou Shopping Center. It is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.

Info: 329-8000.

Kathleen Carr KVA featured artist for April

The Kailua Village Artists featured artist for the month of April is photographer Kathleen Carr.

Carr is a professional and fine art photographer, teacher, author, and a former Polaroid Creative Uses Consultant. She received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts in photography from Ohio University in 1970. She worked for Aperture, a renowned photography quarterly. Her award-winning work has been exhibited internationally, purchased for private collections, and has appeared in numerous books and periodicals. Her four books are “Dolphins: Kindred Spirits” (2015); “Polaroid Manipulations” (Amphoto Books 2002), “Polaroid Transfers” (Amphoto Books 1997); and “To Honor the Earth” (HarperSanFrancisco, 1991). Selected periodicals include Outdoor Photographer (featured artist), National Geographic Traveler, Islands, Decor, (featured artist), Photo Vision, (featured artist), Esquire, Art of Northern California and American Art Collector.

Carr was a staff photographer at the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland, and Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, during the 1970s and ‘80s. She received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship in 1991. She has resided in the Captain Cook area since 2006.

To talk story with Carr, visit her while she is working at the gallery on April 9, 14 and 21.

The Kailua Village Artists Gallery is located at 75-5729 Alii Drive. It is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Info: 329-6653.