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West Maui’s charming city of Wailuku, situated simply west of Kahului, is already frequented by guests. It is the gateway to Iao Valley State Monument, and it is the place the historic Kaahumanu Church and Bailey Home museum is discovered. However the previous years have seen it develop right into a burgeoning arts district, as nicely.
Boutique retailers and artist studios by native creatives line its streets. Performs, live shows, workshops and stage performances are being produced by the various organizations of the Wailuku Performing Arts Affiliation, reminiscent of Maui Chamber Orchestra, Maui OnStage at Iao Theater and ProArts Playhouse. A Hawaiian cultural heart, the Halau of Oiwi Artwork, can also be set to open within the subsequent few years.

One in all Maui’s cherished cities, Wailuku is well-known for its historic landmarks, retailers and boutiques. Picture Credit score: County of Maui
What’s most evident, nevertheless, are the massive variety of murals which have added pops of colour, cultural storytelling and creativity to its streets because of the public artwork program, Small City Large Artwork. Since 2019, 47 items of public artwork, together with 18 murals, have been erected in Wailuku.
“Small City Large Artwork is a public artwork program named after the Wailuku City motto, which is ‘Small city, huge coronary heart,’ and we pair skilled artists with kupuna, members of the group, to create art work that tells the story of Wailuku’s historical past and tradition,” mentioned Kelly McHugh-White, the founding director of Maui Public Artwork Corps. “The last word purpose of Small City Large Artwork was to determine Wailuku as an arts district.”
Topics of the murals embody Hawaiian mythology, the 4 rivers of Wailuku, folks, birds, fish and whales. Sculptures additionally featured are a supersize Chinese language takeout field and a 6-foot-tall, metal fish lure basket.
The general public artwork may be mapped by way of the Halau of Oiwi Artwork web site, WailukuLive.com, or on the free app, Hookamaaina, which has three self-guided strolling excursions: a cultural strolling tour, historic strolling tour and a public artwork strolling tour. Every tour particulars the factors of curiosity that may be visited.
“Persons are actually captivated with making certain folks know that Wailuku just isn’t an ocean city, it is a mountain city. It isn’t a saltwater city, it is a freshwater city. It is this actually cultural epicenter of multicultural historical past that was introduced forth by means of the sugar business,” mentioned McHugh-White. “And I do know individuals are actually pleased with Wailuku they usually really need folks to be asking questions and studying extra.”
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