Moʻolelo of the Ahupuaʻa A Re-imagined Journey into a Hawaiian Ecosystem

Mo‘olelo of the Ahupuaʻa tells the various stories of living, working, playing and learning within a sustainable landscape.

These are themes within the epic Hawaiian myth Hiʻiakaikapoliopele, which Hawaiian artist Solomon Enos depicts in this series of paintings. The heroine Hiʻiaka is on a quest that takes her throughout the various landscapes and worlds of the islands. On the way she encounters an underground hidden world of shape-shifting insect/arachnid-people, who invite her to share their plentiful resources.

The seven paintings that feature in this display are from a wider series, following from a previous display which highlighted the Hawaiian tradition of mo‘olelo, a way of storing and sharing Hawaiian cultural memory that guides future generations in understanding the world. In each painting the artist re-imagines this hidden world, creating an entomological character based on a Hawaiian species. Like these species, each has an important role to play in this eco-system and has the relevant clothing and implements. This display draws on the theme the Ahupuaʻa – a traditional Hawaiian land division that runs from the mountain tops to the sea embracing the ecosystems within, and introduces further characters from Solomon Enos’ imagining of the Hiʻiakaikapoliopele.