PO‘IPU — Hula is something new for Arius Hopman. Normally, people who visit Hopman’s work at his Hanapepe gallery are greeted by panoramic landscapes and seascapes punctuated with floral closeups. But the ongoing orchid and art festival prompted the artist
PO‘IPU — Hula is something new for Arius Hopman.
Normally, people who visit Hopman’s work at his Hanapepe gallery are greeted by panoramic landscapes and seascapes punctuated with floral closeups.
But the ongoing orchid and art festival prompted the artist to venture into new directions, and the result is a hula series.
“This is something new for me,” Hopman said, noting that the first time people are going to see it is at Roy’s Restaurant in the Po‘ipu Shopping Village.
Following a successful show there last year, Hopman said he was invited back again this year, and on Saturday. He interrupted his work with the Hanapepe art and orchid festival to begin hanging his pieces at Roy’s.
The works will be on display through the end of June, Hopman said.
“I brought down 20 pieces, and I don’t know how many of them we’ll be able to hang,” Hopman said.
“But of the 20, 14 of the pieces are original and new. No one has seen them except for a couple of days while we were getting ready for this show.”
As a tribute to the weekend’s orchid show and festival, included among his works is a shadow play of a white phaelanopsis orchid done with a panoramic twist.
The hula series is also a new direction for Hopman who said he used a local setting for the works which feature a kane and wahine hula dancers.
In addition to the photographic art, Hopman said he also will be hanging watercolor pieces in the outside dining room which has a lot more light and is conducive to that media.
Hanging artwork by local artists is an ongoing program with Roy’s who started out by featuring the photographs of local photographer Blaine Michioka of Rainbow Photography.
Following Hopman’s show last year, Roy’s featured the work of L.J. Shimoda who is currently working at the Kaua‘i Museum.
“We just like to have the place pretty,” Hopman said.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.
com
