Unsettling Representations in Kanaka Maoli Filmic and Visual Arts

March 5, 4:45pm - 6:15pm
Mānoa Campus, Halau O Haumea, KamakakÅ«okalani Center for Hawaiian Studies Add to Calendar

"Unsettling Representations in Kanaka Maoli Filmic and Visual Arts"

Ty Kāwika Tengan, Anne Keala Kelly, Ann Marie Nālani Kirk, and Carl Franklin Ka‘ailā‘au Pao

Is it possible to unsettle the normalized marginalization of Native Hawaiian producers, filmmakers, writers, thinkers, and artists and have a meaningful, public dialogue about representation, identity, and cultural appropriation? Is representation or lack of representation in mass media linked to our struggle for sovereignty and the revival of our national and cultural rights as a people in our own homeland?

These and other important questions will be considered in a panel discussion that brings together three Native Hawaiian practitioners in the filmic and visual arts—Anne Keala Kelly, Ann Marie Nālani Kirk, and Carl F. K. Pao. The aim of the discussion, moderated by Ty Kāwika Tengan, is to open up a constructive space for dialogue—within the academy and the wider community—that critically engages with the complex and contested issues concerning representation, identity, and power in Hawai‘i.

Ty Kāwika Tengan is an associate professor in ethnic studies and anthropology. He is the author of the book Native Men Remade: Gender and Nation in Contemporary Hawai‘i (Duke University Press, 2008). Anne Keala Kelly is an independent filmmaker and journalist. She wrote and directed the award-winning documentary Noho Hewa: The Wrongful Occupation of Hawai‘i (2009). Her journalism has been broadcast and published by national news organizations and peer-reviewed journals. Ann Marie Nālani Kirk is an award-winning filmmaker and has written and directed such works as Happy Birthday, Tutu Ruth, and Homealani. Kirk is co-director of the ‘Ōiwi Film Festival, an annual event that showcases films made by Native Hawaiians. Carl Franklin Ka‘ailā‘au Pao is a visual artist who works in a variety of media, including painting, ceramics, sculpture, graphic design, and printmaking. He has participated in numerous exhibitions in Hawai‘i and abroad and currently teaches art at his alma mater, Kamehameha Schools.

This event is cosponsored by Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies.


Ticket Information
Free and open to the public

Event Sponsor
Center for Pacific Islands Studies, Mānoa Campus

More Information
Kathrine Higgins, 956-2658, khiggins@hawaii.edu, Enter Title Here (PDF)

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