Hawaii
*Update (2023) - We returned to touch up & clear coat the mural with the help of local artists. Scroll down to see some photos from the return trip!
Aloha and Greetings from Hawaii!
Our most unique and challenging mural to date was painted on the island of Oahu in Honolulu at the Alohilani Resort Waikiki Beach. Instead of a typical wall as a canvas, we painted horizontally onto the ground. In total, we used over 35 gallons of paint to cover 3,750 sq ft of floor space. This mural can be viewed by the public from the Swell Bar on the 5th floor of the hotel, or from the guest rooms above.
This project came about when we were painting in Santa Monica. We got a call about this potential project with a tight timeline in Hawaii. Who can turn down a trip to paradise in the middle of winter? Two weeks later after finishing up projects Los Angeles and Bermuda, we landed 12 hours across the globe on the beautiful island of Oahu.
Home for the next three weeks, we checked in to the recently renovated Alohilani Resort that sits conveniently across the street from the Pacific Ocean. We dropped our bags on the 26th floor overlooking the bright, calm waves rolling in with a full view of Diamond Head. Then, we got straight to work. Our first trip to Hawaii was at the beginning of our tour for Lisa’s birthday in 2015. It was wonderful to be back in the Aloha state. We talked about painting a mural here back then and it was amazing to make this a reality on an even larger scale than we could have imagined!
Taking on our largest scale mural to date, we had to bring the dream team to Hawaii. Van Zee Sign Co. and Snoeman came to assist us with this piece. They couldn’t be happier to get a break from the brutal NYC winter and get some much-needed warm weather. Luckily, we had them with us through the struggling days of rain that made minor shifts to our schedule. Thank you both for making this mural a memorable one!
When working on such a large scale without the ability to step back, our plan was to grid out the entire mural. With complicated projects like this, the prep work is very important. We came with a binder full of measurements and printed detailed sections of the mural. We sketched out the artwork using chalk taped onto a stick which was a genius idea recommended by a friend (thanks Mast!)
The surface that we painted on was the top of an abandoned garage that was no longer in use. Prior to us arriving, it was just a blank space that was painted brown. The hotel wanted to reveal a colorful piece of community art that coincided with the launch of the Pow Wow Mural Festival. The hotel was a sponsor of the event and most of the artists from all over the world came to stay there. The paint that we used was a marine grade floor paint from Sherwin Williams. Due to all the rain, humidity and ocean mist, we needed a durable high-end paint.
During the painting, rain stayed with us for a solid 3.5 days on and off. We painted under tents while wet vacuuming puddles to keep our canvas dry. Rain would fall from sunny blue skies and it would come and go quickly. Tarps helped for a brief moment until the heavy winds came. We worked through it as a team to keep each other’s spirits high. Luckily, we had enough good weather to finish the mural before a historic winter storm hit that brought snow to Maui.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have our RV in Hawaii but being able to stay and sleep where you are painting makes the job so much more efficient. We cannot thank the hotel enough for their hospitality and meals to keep us energized throughout the week. It also didn’t hurt that it was a beautiful and luxurious hotel resort.
To celebrate the completion of our Greetings from Hawaii mural, we hiked Diamond Head. In addition, we used a service called Turo to rent a Tesla and road-tripped around the east side of the island finishing with sunset at the North Shore. Victor’s been a huge fan of electric cars and it' was a great way to test one out.
While we were painting in Alaska, we were asked during an interview what our next biggest goal was, and we both said painting in Hawaii. We are elated to be able to make this idea a reality within 7 months. Mahalo to all the staff of Alohilani Resort Waikiki Beach for your outstanding hospitality and to White Ink Construction for making this mural possible!
In summer of 2023, we returned to ‘Alohilani Resort to touch up the mural and add on a marine clear coat to the mural. This time, we worked with a team of local artists as well as David Wang. Thanks again to Sherwin Williams for supporting this repaint project.
We met some amazing locals, notably Melon who we met briefly in Chicago during one of our first murals. It turns out we had a ton of mutual friends and even ended up bringing him out to our next project in Bend, OR. Some photos of the repaint below:
Even though we ended up getting Covid during this trip (for the first time) it was a surreal to be back here as a family with our son this time. It really gave us such a different perspective and experience. Hope to be back again some day! Super thankful to Melon for helping us wrap this up while we were stuck in our rooms at the end of the trip.
Press:
Civil Beat - They’re Covering America With Giant Postcards
(ABC) KITV News - Local and international artists are ready to kickoff POW!WOW!
Travel Weekly - Alohilani Resort adds new mural from national project
Letter Guide:
Background: Diamond Head from Waikiki Beach
Letters: Pipeline on North Shore.
Year: 2019
Mural Size: 50'H x 75'W
Location: 2490 Kalakaua Ave, Honolulu, HI 96815 / Alohilani Resort Waikiki Beach