Kakaako was once only an industrial district. Yet, within the past few years, the area has thrived, ushering in a rebirth and revolution marked by sprawling murals that adorn the once-grimy walls.
An artistic renaissance unconfined by museums is exploding in Hawaii’s urban streets.
Today, the area accommodates numerous organizations that are fostering an artistic impetus within Hawaii’s youth. These movements share the intention of creating an enriching community that encapsulates Hawaii’s true spirit of togetherness.
Pow! Wow! Hawaii — one of the primary organizations of the Kakaako art movement founded by Jasper Wong and Kamea Hadar — began as a way to simply gather fellow artists to paint. Now, it has flourished into an internationally renowned artistic community centered around an annual weeklong festival wherein artists are invited to paint, sing and connect with like-minded individuals.
Consisting of a lecture series and community gatherings, it also has served as an educational basis for young artists. Attracted to this purpose, I had sought to become a part of its community as a student of Pow! Wow! Hawaii’s School of Music (PWSoM), a branch of the artistic movement that created a network and platform for young musicians.
From the beginning of my high school career, I’d always looked for ways to practice my creativity. Exhausted from trying to conform to my school’s 2,000 student population, I’d sought answers from the community outside of school. With PWSoM occurring every day after school for two weeks, I’d become a part of the artistic movement. Through the program, I built meaningful relationships with people who understood my aspirations. Together, we planned ahead and created a foundation on which we could lay down our artistic passions.
It was difficult to find people at school who either had dreams similar to mine or who could even understand why this was what I wanted. Because no part of me felt emotionally or artistically satisfied at school, I had to search elsewhere. Kakaako is where I discovered these people — people who instilled in me a newfound feeling of belonging.
Investing in youth by providing access to such artistic programs is essential to properly fostering a student’s identity.
One study found that a student’s hobbies outrank all other factors when influencing his or her identity.
Other studies show that youth spend most of their time pursuing these hobbies and activities during this period of development. It is important that these activities provide a long-lasting and inspirational experience. The artistic movement within Kakaako can offer these experiences. Not only do they give students a creative outlet outside of school, but they foster a sense of community by surrounding the students with like-minded peers.
As a student, I believe that activities outside of school are essential. Although educationally enriching, school alone may not fulfill every student’s artistic or emotional needs.
The people in Kakaako and its movements have heavily shaped my identity in ways the confines of school could never have done alone.
Kakaako offered me opportunities to connect with people similar as me, surrounding me with like-minded youth passionate for a change in Hawaii — artistic or otherwise.
Creative thinkers are continually attracted to Kakaako because of its currently existing art scene full of walls of graffiti that may perhaps perplex outsiders. However, for younger members of the community, this area presents a sense of inspiration, belonging and the possibility of change, for if they can start an artistic revolution in the streets, they can do anything.
“Raise Your Hand,” a monthly column featuring Hawaii’s youth and their perspectives, appears in the Insight section on the first Sunday of each month. It is facilitated by the Center for Tomorrow’s Leaders, a local nonprofit working at the high school level to engage, equip and empower Hawaii’s homegrown future leaders to start making a difference now. For more, see www. CenterForTomorrowsLeaders.org.
