‘Umeke Lā‘au presented by the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts
June 12 – October 24, 2025
Kapolei Hale
Opening Reception at Kapolei Hale: June 12th, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
After four months on display at Honolulu Hale, Meleanna Aluli Meyer’s monumental installation Umeke Lāʻau – Culture Medicine (2025) created for Hawai‘i Triennial 2025, relocates to Kapolei Hale where it will remain through October 2025. During its residency at Honolulu Hale, the ‘Umeke became a gathering space and hosted educational institutions, health and wellness organizations, international peacebuilders, and many others. The Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts (MOCA) moved the 22-foot diameter sculptural calabash to make it more accessible to West O’ahu communities. Groups are invited to use the space for pule (prayer), meditation, and conversations centered around healing and repair.
ʻUmeke Lāʻau: Culture Medicine is a sculptural calabash symbolizing care and cultural practice, was created with Team ‘Umeke: Kainoa Gruspe and Amber Khan (design and construction); Alec Singer (audio design and engineer); Apana ʻohana (transcription); Baker ʻohana (ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and voiceover); Dean Cromwell (Hawaiʻi Community College instructor and 17 carpentry students); Kaili Chun (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa professor and art students); community members who contributed their love, labor and support.
The installation serves as a gathering space for all to experience art and culture as healing. The accompanying audio voices the names of tens of thousands of Hawaiians who signed the Kūʻē Petitions in 1897, protesting the illegal annexation of the Hawaiian Islands. Multimedia artist Meleanna Aluli Meyer is a translator of ʻike Hawai’i who imparts native wisdom through kaona (metaphor). Her work guides viewers to confront historical trauma around personal and collective healing.
Reserve the ʻumeke by completing the online form. For questions regarding scheduling, please contact the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts at moca-info@honolulu.gov or call 808-768-6622.
