NEOMP FALL 2014

NOT EVEN ONCE MURAL PROJECT NEOMP FALL 2014

Not Even Once Mural Project NEOMP on KHON Wake Up 2Day morning news with my student Akira One (15 yrs old) doing live art.  The focus of this project is to bring awareness through art to the dangers of meth use statewide.   Mahalo Nui to Olena Hue, Ron Mizutani and KHON for being a part of this cause and aiding in the fight against youth drug addiction.

 

Click here for complete Island Hopper interview

 Click Here to see complete Island Hopper Article

Kapaa High School in Kauai

When our team of muralists arrived at Kapaa High School on Statehood Day, Friday, August 15, school was out of session. The peace on campus allowed us to execute quickly. A few days prior, Tkay2 had cleaned the wall and painted the background with blue house paint that we used as our base. Every muralist on the team contributed to the finished mural. The team included: Tkay2, Mace, Ras1, Akira1, Aranzazu and East 3. Three of the six artists are under-19. While we painted, we had the staunch support of the Kaneshige family as well as that of Wilma Holi and Leihinahina Sullivan. The principal of Kapaa High School visited the site on day one and spent time getting to know us while watching us paint. Today, the Mayor of Kauai County, Mr. Bernard Carvalho Jr., declared a proclamation for our mural project and announced August 19 as a day of anti-meth awareness at Kapaa High School. We are all so thankful that Kapaa High School understands how much art inspires young people and how it can be used to communicate messages that students are passionate about. In this case, the message being: Not Even Once. Thank you Kapaa High School, Principal Daniel Hamata and the Hawaii Meth Project. We also thank Ms. Sara Miura from Deja Vu Surf Hawaii and Mr. Chuck Brady from the Kauai Marriott Kalapaki Beach for attending today’s proclamation ceremony.

Maui High School

At Maui High School (MHS) in Kahalui, nearly two thousand students, plus faculty and staff, witnessed how a big, bright blue rectangle, painted on the white exterior of the library, located in the central quad, turned into a dynamic, underwater ocean scene. When the school bell rang every forty-five minutes or so, hundreds of people would move from one side of campus to another. Some would stop to take pictures of the mural-in-the-making. Others made encouraging remarks about our progress in creating art with an anti-meth message.

On Friday afternoon East-3 gave a 60-minute workshop to nearly fifty drawing and graphic arts students about the foundations of murals. The first half of class took place in the classroom, and then he led students outdoors, in front of the mural. There, he continued his lesson, introduced the team of artists – RasOne, Tkay and Atres – and made time for students to ask questions – and there were many!

Later on that same day, journalism students filmed and interviewed our team of artists as a test for their communications class. These juniors and seniors asked us challenging questions like: Why do you choose aerosol as your medium? Will you continue to paint murals in the future? What is the connection between the message of the mural – Not Even Once – and the seascape?

In response to the last question, East-3 believes that “murals are all about community, and one thing we all have in common is the ocean that surrounds us. We want to create imaging that connects with everyone” which is why we chose ocean scenes as one of our NEOMP themes.

Some of the distinguishing features of this mural are its grand scale, accurate representation of Hawaiian reef fish, and playful bursts of color.

We would like to send our warmest thanks to muralists Jason Medeiros (Kauai) and RasOne, Timothy Ward, (Las Vegas) for featuring as guest artists on this mural tour.

Also, we are very grateful for our corporate sponsors here in Maui including the Grand Wailea, Mokulele Airlines, Whole Foods and Down to Earth.

Special thanks to Mr. Nico Kalanich; Mr. Bruce Anderson, MHS principal; Mrs. Glenda Joyo, MHS Student Activities Coordinator; Mrs. Georgianna DeCosta, Hawaii Meth Project Program Director; and the team of Hawaii Meth Project volunteers who conducted a fun, lunch-time, anti-meth awareness educational activity during lunch on Friday next to our live painting.

Mahalo nui loa to all and we hope MHS is proud to be part of the inaugural year of this innovative mural project in collaboration with Hawaii Meth Project.

Kealakehe Elementary in Kona, Hawaii

This week we completed our third ocean-themed, anti-meth mural at Kealakehe Elementary. When we arrived on this charming campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the custodians had already painted our assigned wall blue. They also created a rectangular workspace, in front of the wall, with a bright, orange plastic fence. The fence kept everyone safe and did not prevent us from achieving the high-level of engagement we strive for at every school that invites us to create a mural. While we painted, a healthy Hawaiian sea world manifested itself right before our eyes. We are very pleased that so many of our new friends were so intrigued by our method and mission. Although we did not organize a formal workshop here, we constantly engaged with students during their playtime and afterschool program called A+. The Kealakehe Elementary community touched our hearts and we can only hope we were able to do the same!

Kealakehe Elementary is located at about the 500-foot elevation on the slopes of Hualalai Mountain, a five-minute drive from downtown Kailua-Kona. The student body is just over 1,000 students and the wall we painted was 9 feet high by 25 feet wide. Our team of six artists used approximately 50 Montana 94 aerosol cans and the anti-meth message can now be seen from various vantage points on the campus.

Many thanks to Joe “Joski” Baxter, Michael “Reptank” Sato, Jason “Mase” Madeiros, Trysen “Tkay” Kaneshige, Jonah Baxter, Aranzazu “Atres” Ascunce, Floorox, Principal Nancy Matsukawa, Vice Principal Joe Hao, Hawaii Meth Project, Daddy Craig Kaneshige, King Kamehameha’s Courtyard Marriott, Mr. Jak Hu and our statewide sponsors.

Mahalo to Reptank  for documenting the mural process.  Check out his YouTube Channel: Rep Tank

Click Here to see full article from West Hawaii

Kahuku High School on Oahu, Hawaii

Many thanks to Principal Pauline Masaniai and Vice Principal Ikaika Plunkett of Kahuku High and Intermediate who invited us to paint the fourth and final mural (9 feet x 20 feet) of this first year of the Not Even Once Mural Project (NEOMP)!

Known as “The Pride of the North Shore”, Kahuku High and Intermediate, was founded in 1897 and has an enrollment of nearly 1,500 students. This mural of the Fall 2014 NEOMP series is unique because:

• This mural was executed on an interior wall rather than an exterior one. It can be found inside the cafeteria where students enter at least twice a day.

• The theme of this mural is team spirit, which is why the two characters are wearing clothing and accessories with the letter K, representing Kahuku.

We are happy to announce that the Not Even Once Mural Project will continue in 2015!

If you are interested in having your school or youth center host a Not Even Once mural, please contact me. Join the seven other facilities and schools already on board with new murals on their campus at no cost to your school or youth center! Just like a kind, Kahuku custodian reported to us regarding student response to the new mural once it was completed: “Only positive things” – that’s what these murals can do for you!

We are grateful for the support we received from Turtle Bay Resort, Alana Hong Eagle & Joelle and Hawaii Meth Project for this mural in Oahu.