A collaborative multimedia art project has become a launching pad for promoting Hawaii Island as a destination to inspire artists, not just as a place to take a vacation.
In 2018, Big Island artist Kristie Fujiyama Kosmides was commissioned to create large-scale murals for the Hilo International Airport that were meant to “represent the island.” It wasn’t until 2020 that she finally found a way to express the notion through her paintings.
“This was one of the first times I truly felt overwhelmed by a project, because I couldn’t figure out how to express something that means so much to me and so many people,” Kosmides said. “I knew I wanted to collaborate with different artists, but I wasn’t sure what that would look like until I talked with Tracey about the project.”
Local filmmaker Tracey Niimi met Kosmides in 2020, and she eventually told him about the commission and her dilemma. To her surprise, Niimi connected her with his good friend and world-renowned ukulele player, Jake Shimabukuro. The three artists quickly connected and formed their artist group they call Abstract Collab.
The trio began working together to create a multimedia art project, which culminated into a song written and played by Shimabukuro that has been paired with a music video directed and filmed by Niimi. The creative process ultimately gave Kosmides the inspiration she needed for the five airport murals.
Created during the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, this collaboration was guided by the economic struggles felt throughout the community as well as the vision of promoting Hawaii Island not just a place for a vacation, but a place of inspiration.
“It’s hard to say what happened first, but essentially, Jake wrote a song called ‘Eyes of the I’iwi,’ which included ambient sounds that I recorded over time,” Niimi said. “After the song, we made a music video and filmed in several locations, which is how Kristie found her inspiration for the murals. The project became this three-way, completely circular and inspirational wheel that kept turning.”
Shimabukuro wrote “Eyes of the ‘I‘iwi” as a musical representation of the depth to Hawaii Island and the dynamic environments and experiences visitors may have. The song can be heard on Shimabukuro’s latest album, “Grateful.”
The music video is a visual art piece that brings everything to life by featuring the island’s iconic landscapes and contrasting climates while also telling the story of the collaboration.
The video will be the main source of promotion for Hawaii Island with the goal of bringing more artists to the island for inspiration and rejuvenation. While there are no plans for distribution yet, the video will premiered during Shimabukuro’s latest sold out show at the Hilo Palace Theater.
The last piece of the collaboration is now perpetually inside Hilo’s airport, where visitors and traveling residents can look up to see Kosmides’ paintings depicting Hawaii Island from a bird’s eye view.
Mayor Mitch Roth recently visited the Hilo airport to see the murals and talk with Abstract Collab about their vision and how the project coincides with Hawaii Island’s Destination Management Action Plan, or DMAP.
The Hawaii Tourism Authority Hawaii Island Action Plan iterates the importance of creating and emphasizing cultural, ecological and creative experiences that become more meaningful and reciprocal for visitors and residents
“Through DMAP, we have been talking about how we want to build tourism around communities versus communities around tourism and a big part of that is helping tourists appreciate the beauty of our island,” Roth said. “You look at each of these murals and they each tell a story of Hawaii Island. We want artists to travel here for the purpose of experiencing that inspiration for themselves.”
According to the trio, Abstract Collab is an ever-evolving, active experiment in participatory creativity. They plan to continue working together and with other artists to create pieces for a growing body of multimedia art that reflects the communal process.
For more information on the Abstract Collab, visit abstractcollab.com
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com
