Come visit us on the street in front of our shop –The Refuge– every third Saturday of the month.  Every Honolulu Night Market The Refuge updates our student art sale and exhibit in the shop, while students Live Paint on the street.  The Honolulu Night Market features a full family-style block party, including a street of food and vendor booths, stages of live music, dj’s, dancers, fashion shows, a skateboard ramp, the Taste of Salt Marketplace, and more….

Tune in to our website each month for 808 Urban’s latest Honolulu Night Market features.

For more information, visit www.honolulunightmarket.com

In January 2013, our 808 Urban Junior Boards kicked off Pow Wow Hawaii 2013 by painting a collaborative mural representing the diversity of Hawaii.

by Lisa Kusaka – Team Leader, Punahou Junior Board

This wall was 808 Urban Jr. Board’s contribution to Pow Wow 2013.  We wanted to highlight the different cultures that we see in our islands, and to celebrate how they all come together to create a diverse, yet harmonious community.  The owl, or pu’eo, is one of the major Hawaiian aumakuas.  It is looking towards the sun, which is painted the way it is depicted in Filipino culture.  On the right there is a Portuguese woman holding an ukulele, since the Portuguese introduced the instrument to our islands.  She is surrounded by bamboo, a type of grass that is associated with the Chinese culture.  Bamboo is known for it’s strength, as it may bend in the wind but never break.  On the left we represented the Samoan culture with a Samoan man wearing a traditional red lei, and blowing a conch shell.  The towering wave in the background is a testament to the Japanese, as it is painted in Japanese wood block print style.  In the background we incorporated a Vietnamese pattern to pull everything together.

The Diversity Mural was a collaborative effort between Waipahu, Punahou, Roosevelt, and Kamehameha Junior Boards.

Don’t miss this month’s Honolulu Night Market!  After a week of mural painting all throughout the neighborhood, Pow Wow Hawaii and 808 Urban will be celebrating the closing of the arts event at February’s Honolulu Night Market.  PRIME and Estria will also introduce their new space in Kaka’ako that evening, “Mahoa”, with an opening gallery exhibition and artist signing -1xLAND – 2xSEA – also featuring 1xRUN and a number of Pow Wow Hawaii’s visiting artists who will be signing.  808 Urban’s shop, “The Refuge”, will be hosting it’s Youth Artist Exhibition and Art Sale, while 8o8 Urban students paint live and host a writer’s bench in front of the store.  Guest artist, Tenn, will host a Recypher recycled arts project out front.

The Honolulu Night Market is a monthly block party event that happens every third Saturday of the month, featuring Live Bands, Lightsleepers on the 1′s and 2′s, Fashion Show, Food Vendors, and a Taste of Salt Marketplace.  For more information, visit:  http://www.honolulunightmarket.com/ 

A Print Exhibition featuring ESTRIA & PRIME and Showcase by 1xRUN

and introducing Estria and PRIME’S new multi-purpose space in Kaka’ako, “Mahoa”

Feb. 16th, 2013

5pm -10pm

@ Mahoa - 679 Auahi St. (between Coral and Keawe Streets), Honolulu, HI

Featuring several prints by Prime and I available for the first time.

This is in collaboration with 1xrun.com, the company that brings you

awesome prints by many of today’s top artists.

Live signing event!

Artists on hand to sign their work:

Meggs, Flying Fortress, Nychos, Dabs & Myla, Jukebox Cowboys, Askew,

Hannah Stouffer, Erik Otto, Shark Toof, Poesia

Hawai‘i Artists: Angry Woebot, Jasper Wong, Ekundayo, Prime and Estria

Gallery hours: 5-10PM February 2-16 only!

This is your ONLY chance in Hawai‘i to get your hands on extremely

limited prints by these 1xrun artists.

Tags: #powwowhawaii #1xrun #1xland2xsea #nightmarket #808urban #estria

twitter and instagram accounts: @houseofmeggs

After a successful year of launching the pilot program of the 808 Urban x Pow Wow Hawaii Youth Arts Workshop, we are happy to announce the 2013 workshop series.  Classes are a long term commitment in conjunction with our Junior Board Initiative program and will run from April 2013 to November 2013.  We are excited to expand our number of students and boards by bringing on a whole new group of students who have committed to joining the 808 Urban family and Junior Board Initiative.   Unfortunately, registration is now closed, as we have reached our maximum capacity of students.  Stay tuned as the this year’s program unfolds, bringing you a lot more interactive blogging by our Junior Boards.

____________________________________________________________

Read more about the pilot program from 2012:

INFORMATION
The 808 Urban x POW WOW Hawai’i Youth Art Workshops works with dedicated students over a period of nine months through various after school and Saturday art classes. Led by 808 Urban’s John “Prime” Hina, these workshops will explore contemporary urban art and its influence on commercial culture from the 1950s to the present. Students will discuss changing societal concepts regarding contemporary public “street” art while exploring a variety of artistic concepts, including basic design, color theory, and symbolism. Additional elements that will naturally come from these workshops include self-expression, and cultural awareness, as well as respect for community and nature.

These workshops are an effort to prepare students for future POW WOW Hawai’i gatherings. The more art these students do in preparation for these gatherings, the more the students will be able to learn from these national and international urban artists. The hope is that the participating students will be able to conceive, develop, and collaborate on a large mural in Kakaʻako as part of POW WOW Hawai’i.

The following schools have participated in a POW WOW Hawai’i education program: Kamehameha Schools-Kapalama Campus, Roosevelt High School, McKinley High School, YMCA-Kalihi, Voyager Charter Schools, Punahou School, Farrington High School and Washington Middle School.

The ultimate mission is to validate student art experiences and introduce young people to various forms of public expression. Working closely with 808 Urban to continue to support a gathering of contemporary artists that engages with the broader community in the process and creation of art. The final product of the project will beautify a portion of the students’ urban landscape.

Come through and share in the festivities of Pow Wow Hawaii 2013 throughout the whole week of Feb. 9th – 16th, as 808 Urban, including our Junior Boards, will be repping the kama’aina of Oahu as participating artists, educators and storytellers.  We have a variety of events happening throughout Pow Wow Hawaii in and around our shop (The Refuge – 683 Auahi Street in Kaka’ako).  Don’t miss the opening exhibit and artist signing, the launch event of PRIME and Estria’s new multi-purpose space called “Mahoa”.  The event will be part of the big Pow Wow Hawaii finale block party on Saturday, Feb. 16th, in conjunction with the Honolulu Night Market on Auahi Street.  Be sure to stop our shop that evening, as our students will be selling their artwork and other merchandise and doing live painting out front. This year also marks the first year our students from the 808 Urban x Pow Wow Hawaii Youth Arts Workshops and Junior Board Initiative program will be participating as muralists within Pow Wow.  For more information, please click on the following links.  For more general information on Pow Wow Hawaii, please read below.

January 2013:  808 Urban Junior Boards kick off Pow Wow Hawaii with the “Diversity Mural”

Feb. 9th – 16th:  Pow Wow Hawaii’s Schedule of events for the week

Saturday, Feb. 16th, 6-11pm:  Honolulu Night Market and Pow Wow Hawaii Finale Block Party

Saturday, Feb. 16th, 5-10pm, Artist Signing and Launch of new “Mahoa” space:  1xLAND – 2xSEA:  A Print Exhibition Featuring ESTRIA + PRIME & Showcase by 1xRUN 

April – Nov. 2013:   808 Urban x Pow Wow Hawaii Youth Arts Workshops for 2013

POW WOW HAWAII INFORMATION

POW WOW Hawai’i is gearing up for its fourth showing in February 2013. With countless renown international and local artists converging on the city of Honolulu, expect even more art to populate the streets of Kaka’ako. Alongside a group exhibition of new works from all the participating artists, pop up shops, lectures at the University of Hawaii, youth art and music workshops, and a big block party to cap off the week’s worth of events.

For more info on Pow Wow Hawaii, visit:  PowWowHawaii.com

808 Urban Youth Artists Splash Color on another Successful Night Market

We can’t help but smile when we walk through the streets every third Saturday of the month and feel the support and creativity that Night Market is drawing to Kaka’ako. Proving to be the latest art scene to hit O’ahu, Honolulu Night Market continues to encourage artistic collaborations, community involvement and cultural awareness by highlighting the boundless talents of neighboring galleries, food vendors, designers and artists. The 808 Urban family wants to extend a huge thank you to the supporters of Honolulu Night Market and 808 Urban, the people in the community who came out, all the art and food vendors who participated and the genius minds behind Street Grindz and Night Market. It’s events like this that inspire local involvement and serve as a reminder to embrace the art and culture that is happening in one’s own backyard.

808 Urban’s youth artists have been utilizing Honolulu Night Market to showcase a new collection of handmade products every month in their Community Arts Hub, The Refuge and at their booth in the “Pinch of Salt” retail market. The proceeds from these sales continue to be used to fund free arts programming for the teen artists and their self-governed Junior Boards. Night Market serves as an exceptional opportunity for the youth artists to not only showcase their art to the community, but also to teach them entrepreneurial skills, to give them the confidence to interact with the community and spread awareness regarding our cause. The event also inspires them to continue using art as an outlet and form of expression.

With the holidays rapidly approaching, the December 15^th Night Market will focus on holiday gift items and decorations created by 808 Urban’s junior boards. The youth artists will be selling recycled spray can art, t-shirts, original paintings and photographs and hand-crafted ceramics. Your purchases and donations will continue to go straight into the pockets of the artists and their junior boards for supplies and future community projects. 808 Urban encourages the community to join them at a simple Writer’s Bench, where artists of all ages can talk story, sketch and share design tips. Just like November’s Night Market, the student artists will be live-painting outside The Refuge, demonstrating the art of on the spot inspiration while collaborating with other professional artists within the community. The organization is always looking for interested businesses within the local community who want to hang these pieces in their establishment to help support the youth artists and increase awareness to those unfamiliar with 808 Urban. (If interested, please contact Sierra Dew at sierra@808urban.org).

The 808 Urban family cannot wait to see you all again in a couple weeks at the Honolulu Night Market on Saturday December 15^th on Auahi Street from 7pm-12am.

AUAHI ST. COLLECTIVE TO PRESENT: “BEHIND THE WALL”,  A CELEBRATION FUNDRAISER FOR 808 URBAN’S FOUNDER, JOHN “PRIME” HINA

Honolulu, HI (September 20th, 2012) –On Thursday, September 20th from 6P to 10P along Auahi Street in Kaka’ako (687 Auahi block)—a little row of the arts community is gathering for a one night event, “BEHIND THE WALL”, to celebrate the work of urban artist John Hina (PRIME) and 808 Urban.  808 Urban is an organization PRIME founded to keep at-risk youth off the streets and to revitalize Hawai’i’s communities through large-scale mural art.  All funds raised will go to the work of PRIME and 808 Urban. Tax-deductible donations are being accepted by Pu’uhonua Society for 808 Urban.  This will be a chance to explore and interact with Kaka’ako’s up and coming community-arts district.

The event includes a silent auction of various artworks in R/D from area creative’s including Fresh Café, Fishcake, Na Mea Hawai’i, R/D, 808 Urban, Native Books, Lana Lane Studios, and others. Bid on commissioned artwork from Jasper Wong, Kamea Hadar, Jeff Gress and original artwork from some of our best street artists, including Estria, BAM, and PRIME himself.  Other items include a limited number of mystery grab bags with creative swag ($50+value) with a $20 price tag, a “complete street” of chalking, walking and talking, thanks to Poni and Brandon of Street Grindz.  Bring your own chair, or buy one already painted by Lana Lane Studios art crew NA ALAKAI.  All types of pupus offered by Maile and Marissa at ii gallery, where Dana’s Little Black Bag exhibition will be showing for the last night.  Catch an improv comedy “PRIME Roast” by Improvhi and the Original Jams Improv Show at the Greenhouse.  Our Junior Board youth artists will be selling original art in 808 Urban’s The Refuge, and quick drawn originals will be behind the wall at ii gallery, at great prices-curated by John Koga.  There will be a pile of shirts to dig through at low tag prices from a1000x, in4mation, Hawaii Imagination, Lost Kingdom, VERS, 808 Urban and others. Music will be added to the mix, as will a couple food trucks–all in celebration of PRIME and 808 Urban.

Currently, we are focusing on building PRIME’s salary through our new Monthly Donor Support Teams.  Click on the link to learn more.

__________________________________________

Make a Donation to our ”BEHIND THE WALL” Fundraiser

All proceeds of this fundraiser benefit PRIME.  The event is to celebrate and honor the work he has contributed to the community and to create an opportunity for the community to give back.

We are putting a call out for in-kind donations to help raise money during the event.  Here are ways that you can donate:

• Make a financial donation to benefit PRIME & 808 Urban
• Donate Art to be sold at the event
• Donate Items and/or Services for the Silent Auction to be featured at the event
• Donate Items for Mystery Grab Bags that will be sold at the event
• Donate Pupus and/or Beverages to be sold at the event

For more information, email:  info@808urban.org

or contact:  Sierra 808-283-3073  or  Nikila  808-388-6824

Students from the 2012 Pow Wow Hawaii/808 Urban Arts Workshop Series.

The Graffiti Workshop Series is a year long workshop series, training youth in community muralism.  For more info or to register, please email info@808urban.org (all interested students must be willing to commit to all three levels of the series from March – October)

The 808 Urban x Pow Wow Hawai’i Youth Art Workshops work with dedicated students over a period of nine months through various after school and Saturday art classes. Led by 808 Urban’s John “Prime” Hina, these workshops will explore contemporary urban art and its influence on commercial culture from the 1950′s to the present. Students will discuss changing societal concepts regarding contemporary public “street” art while exploring a variety of artistic concepts, including basic design, color theory, and symbolism. Additional elements that will naturally come from these workshops include self-expression, and cultural awareness, as well as respect for community and nature.

These workshops are an effort to prepare students for future PoW WoW Hawai’i gatherings. The more art these students do in preparation for these gatherings, the more the students will be able to learn from these national and international urban artists. The hope is that the participating students will be able to conceive, develop, and collaborate on a large mural in Kakaʻako as part of PoW WoW Hawai’i.

The following schools have participated in 808 Urban x PoW WoW Hawai’i education program: Kamehameha Schools-Kapalama Campus, Waipahu High School, Roosevelt High School, McKinley High School, YMCA-Kalihi, Voyager Charter Schools, Punahou School, Farrington High School and Washington Middle School.

The ultimate mission is to validate student art experiences and introduce young people to various forms of public expression. Working closely with 808 Urban to continue to support a gathering of contemporary artists that engages with the broader community in the process and creation of art. The final product of the project will beautify a portion of the students’ urban landscape.

Video by Banzai Media, www.banzaimike.com

Sarah Chun (left) helps Mai’a Project students cut stencils

Before I came back to Honolulu for summer break, I was looking through craigslist for opportunities to work or volunteer. I came across an ad that offered an internship with an organization that offers free arts programming to at-risk youth and creates public works of art around O’ahu. The internship promised an environment that would be stimulating and hands-on experience in working with artists and youth.

I was excited because of my interest in art, a new-found fascination with graffiti and my desire to contribute to the community in a positive way. Being an intern at 808 Urban sounded like a unique learning experience because of all the different facets of the organization. I remember talking on the phone with Sierra about HIstory productions, the Junior Board Initiative, Community Murals and the Refuge space. At first, I was overwhelmed by all of the programs 808 Urban had in place, but I felt at ease when I arrived home and was able to meet both Sierra and Prime in person. Their friendly welcome and enthusiasm for the programs at 808 Urban made me feel like I had made a good decision about how to spend my summer.

My experiences working in the Refuge made me realize how important it is to be resourceful, proactive and assess how I can best contribute in a given situation. I found that my organizational skills and writing abilities were useful and I challenged myself to engage with others while at the Refuge and during the Mai’a project workshop sessions. Prime, Sierra and Nikila allowed me to contribute to various programs and gave me the opportunity to explore what programs I wanted to put my time and energy into. I was able to observe the graffiti workshop on Saturday, meet members of the Junior Boards, help out at the art auction, research information about graffiti in Hawai’i, participate in the Mai’a project workshop, develop merchandise for the Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery, take on administrative responsibilities and learn more about the structure of non-profit organizations.

My internship last year involved sitting at a desk for nearly eight hours for five days a week. This year, I was able to learn more about community outreach, the significance of community revitalization and meet fascinating individuals. I was not bound to a desk and I was actually interested in what I was doing.

I am grateful to have been surrounded by the members of the 808 Urban community. Meeting Prime and hearing him talk about his youth and how he envisions 808 Urban in the future was inspiring. Meeting Sierra, helping her with the Mai’a project, laughing about our indecision in determining t-shirt designs and learning by her example to be more nurturing and encouraging were invaluable to my experience at 808 Urban. Meeting Nikila, helping her with organizing The Refuge space, hearing about her experiences working at other non-profits and receiving her guidance in administrative tasks all contributed to in my increased interest and knowledge about organizations like 808 Urban. Working with the other interns and adolescents in the various workshops helped me discover what I can give and how to value what I give.

808 Urban provides a wide variety of experiences for each individual, as long as he or she takes the opportunity to learn and contribute. Even though I am sad to be leaving 808 Urban, I am excited to see how it expands and grows. I feel extremely blessed to have been able to work with an innovative, creative and passionate group of people who believe in social change through art and creativity.

Sarah Chun: former summer intern with 808 Urban – Majoring in Women’s Studies, Minoring in Art at Chapman University in Orange, California.