Kumulipo — Mahealily's Portfolio

Title

KUMULIPO

Description

KUMULIPO is a collection of invisible prints containing the ancient Hawaiian creation chant, the Kumulipo. Due to it’s age, sacredness, and anti-Christian nature, information about the chant is scarce, and most of the extensive research into the Kumulipo has been conducted by American anthropologists, not Hawaiians. Thus, I, a Hawaiian, have taken back control of sharing this chant and purposefully hidden the words in plain sight, asking viewers to look closer and reflect on whether they should be accessing information not belonging to them.

Hand-typing each line, I formatted this oli using traditional western typography principles and stripping the text of all diacritical marks. Establishing visual irony was important to truly communicate my point, packaging a piece of Hawaiian history only the most informed could decipher in the most westernized way possible. Additionally to create further confusion, I justified every line of the oli and screen-printed clear ink on each of the 12 B1-size papers, so that the words could only be viewed at a certain angle under light.

The pattern made from the words of the Kumulipo is artwork in itself; however, the power lies in meaning, and unlike much of westernized information about Hawai’i, this piece was created solely for indigenous eyes who can immediately identify what they see.

Date

May 2025

Duration

2 Months

Media

Screen Print Collection

Size (mm)

640mm x 900mm