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Hawaii’s Cowboy Culture Comes to Arizona
Paniolos (Hawaiian cowboys) learned to ride horses and work cattle from Spanish American vaqueros fifty years before these same skills were passed on to cowboys working the great Texas cattle drives. Today, these traditions thrive and shed light on a significant, yet little known aspect of American heritage. The Paniolo Project is funded by The National Endowment for the Arts; DCAF was chosen as 1 of 57 Artistic Creativity & Preservation grantees from 387 original submissions. The artistic exchange includes two collaborative projects. California saddle maker, Alec Franco and 5th generation paniolo saddle maker, Alvin Kawamoto will build a saddle that incorporates distinct regional influences with functional and decorative elements. Master woodworker, Bill Burke and renowned Hawaiian luthier, David Gomes will build a Single 0 Guitar from mesquite & rosewood. Peter Kretzmann will add engraved silver and inlaid abalone embellishments to the instrument. Artists will attend the Opening Reception Friday, May 27th, at 6:00 pm. These one-of-a-kind pieces will be on display and available for sale throughout the Trappings Exhibition before the project travels to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. There, the artistic & cultural components of the Paniolo Project will be on display along with historical information about the Paniolo culture (on loan from curator Edgy Lee and the Bishop Museum of Honolulu). Also included in the display will be drawing plans from each artistic collaboration and photo-documentation of each artist and their building process. The display will be enhanced by a ukulele built by David Gomes and a rawhide reata braided by Alvin Kawamoto. A Vaquero style saddle will illustrate the stylistic differences between cultures. As part of the Trappings festival, The Great American Cowboy Forum and Gallery Tour on Saturday, May 28th, 1:00pm - 4:00pm, will bring together Kawamoto and Franco with DCAF artist Heather Hafleigh, whose photo-documentation of the charreria (Mexican rodeo), compares artistic and cultural traditions. A gallery tour will follow to identify the multi-cultural elements found in the artwork of Trappings. On Saturday and Sunday, June 11 & 12, during the 4th Annual Flagstaff Folk Music Festival, Bill Burke and David Gomes will perform and present a guitar/ukulele workshop. Trappings of the American West is the only exhibition in the United States that combines fine and functional art of the cowboy culture. Sponsored in part by The National Endowment for the Arts, Arizona Commission on the Arts and Flagstaff Cultural Partners, Trappings is recognized by the National Office of Tourism as one of the top 100 cultural events in the United States. Ninety artists from 14 Western states, Hawaii and Canada will participate in the juried, invitational exhibition. Approximately 350 pieces of artwork will be available for sale. A one-time admission fee to the Trappings Exhibition is
$3 for adults, $2 for students & seniors, $1 for children. Most events are
free with admission; some are nominally priced. A full media kit and
schedule of festival events is available online at www.drycreekarts.com. Photo courtesy of The Dry Creek Arts Fellowship Edited by Dave Shultz |
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In a unique cultural and
artistic exchange, the shared heritage of Western American, Hawaiian, and
Mexican cowboys is explored in The Paniolo Project during the 16th Annual
Trappings of the American West Exhibition & Festival. The Dry Creek Arts
Fellowship (DCAF) presents Trappings and The Paniolo Project at the Coconino
Center for the Arts in Flagstaff, Arizona, May 27th - June 19th, 2005, and
at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, beginning July 1, 2005.