#8x8_shangrila audio
During the summer of 2020, eight Hawaiʻi-based visual artists and eight performing artists were invited to create new work responding to the theme of “place” at the Shangri La. Each artist was entrusted with one of eight gallery spaces that served as both a creative prompt and exhibition space for their work. The result? A remarkable and highly original exhibition that showcases the exceptional creativity that exists across the Hawaiian archipelago and its intersections with Islamic art, cultures, and design in the Pacific.
In this original audio series, Shangri La staff members interview some of the artists featured in the exhibition to take a deep dive into their processes, materialities, and their diverse take on the theme of place.
Music featured in this series is by Kahnma, a singer and songwriter featured in the #8x8_shangrila exhibition. Check out her full performance here.
— Nāwahineokalaʻi Lanzilotti
Karima Daoudi with Nāwahineokalaʻi Lanzilotti and Maya Portner
In this episode, Karima Daoudi, Shangri La’s Public Programs & Special Events Coordinator, holds a conversation with multimedia artist and cellist, Nāwahineokalaʻi Lanzilotti, and textile artist and educator, Maya Portner, about how their relationship with Shangri La has changed over time, how they approached creating their pieces in a space that holds sacred art, and what it means to have an embodied artistic practice.
— Sequoia Carr-Brown
Special Guest Interviewer Akiemi Glenn with Sequoia Carr-Brown
In this episode recorded during Black History Month, special guest interviewer, Dr. Akiemi Glenn, Executive Director of the Pōpolo Project, interviews movement artist, Sequoia Carr-Brown. The Pōpolo Project redefines what it means to be Black in Hawai‘i and in the world, and is one of Shangri La’s frequent partners and collaborators. Sequoia shares her experiences of being a Black woman living in Hawai‘i, how she uses her art as a way to work through trauma and shed light on forgotten parts of American history, and tells listeners how she first learned about Hawaiʻi watching surfers on Lake Michigan as a child in her hometown of Chicago.
— Sai Bhatawadekar
Leslee Michelsen with Reem Bassous and Sai Bhatawadekar
In this episode, Dr. Leslee Michelsen, Shangri La’s Curator of Exhibitions & Collections, holds a conversation with multimedia artist and professor, Reem Bassous, and dancer, philosopher and professor, Sai Bhatawadekar. They explore topics such as how to express ethereality through art, how to channel loss and rebirth, and the complex layers of what it means to appreciate, collect and share art and culture that is not your own.
— Dr. Keith Cross
Navid Najafi with Keith Cross and Brandon Ng
In this episode, Navid Najafi, Shangri La’s Learning Programs Coordinator, talks with MC, singer and professor, Keith Cross AKA Doctabarz and photographer, Brandon Ng. They discuss native plants, delve into ideas of progress, and what it means to use art to occupy places where one has been excluded historically and culturally.
— Melissa Chimera
Konrad Ng with Melissa Chimera and Moses Goods
In this episode, Dr. Konrad Ng, Shangri La’s Executive Director, talks with painter, Melissa Chimera, and actor and playwright, Moses Goods, about the importance of recognizing family lineages informing our world view, Hawaiʻi’s tradition of multiculturalism, and how to unpack the complicated layers of a place like Shangri La through artistic expression.
