Gallery Analysis

I visited the Lindgren gallery and observed the works there. The gallery is a hall way area with paintings, shirts, and shirt designs. The artist, Kimberly Chai, is originally from Hawaii, and many of her works reflect as aspect of Hawaiian culture. Even before looking at the artist and the topic of her works, I could easily tell that her work was Hawaiian. Being from Hawaii as well, I really felt a sense of home when I looked at the work here. Of all her work, I enjoyed her Stolen Hibiscus, Reflections, and Nene and Ohalo Berries paintings.
The first painting that caught my attention is called Stolen Hibiscus. It depicts a Hibiscus flower plant inside a structure that resembles a cage. The Hibiscus is yellow with a red core area. There is an unusual orange circular structure in the upper right corner of the painting. At first, I was confused as to why the name of the painting is named Stolen Hibiscus. I could easily see a hibiscus, but I couldn’t tell what made it stolen. I then realized that the background looked like cage. The cage appeared to be gray with wires and small rectangular openings that let in fresh air. I’m not positive
what the orange circular structure is, but my best guess says that it’s some sort of light to help keep the plant alive. Stealing a flower may not seem like a big deal, but taking flowers out of Hawaii needs to pass agriculture inspection. Whoever took the Hibiscus plant in the painting, must be trying to avoid the inspection.
The second painting that caught my attention is called Reflections.
It depicts a small bond with three lily flowers blooming and many lily pads on the water. The water appears to be clear enough that reflections can be seen. There’s a reflection in the water, but I can’t tell what it is. I liked this painting mainly because I wanted to interpret what the reflection was. The reflections are white and have unclear shapes. I think one of the reflections is a little girls head. The shape resembles a head, and there are areas that I can identify to possibly be a head and mouth. Seeing little clear ponds like this is common in Hawaii, and I believe this painting is meant to capture the beauty of these clear ponds. The pure and reflective water reflects more than the objects above it. It reflects the untainted beauty of the Hawaiian
Nature. The Third Painting I looked is called Nene and Ohalo Berries. Of all the paintings, I loved this one the most. It depicts two Nene Gooses walking on a hardened lava flow. From the lava flow, there are three Ohalo berries trees growing. There is also a brown area behind the lava flow. I believe this is a landscape of dirt. One of the Nene is leaning forward to take a bite out of one the berries. The other Nene is looking towards the other two Ohalo trees. It’s pretty obvious that its thinking of going to eat some berries as well. To me, the painting is a realist depiction of the lives of the Nene gooses. The Ohalo berries are known to grow on Maui and the Big Island, and they are the favored food for the Nene goose. It’s hard to describe, but the artist really captures the style of Hawaii with the picture. The hardened lava and dirt landscape really matches what you would see in a traditional Hawaiian landscape. The Lindgren Gallery was very unique in that it depicted the culture of my home state. The Stolen Hibiscus, Reflections, and Nene and Ohalo Berries paintings were definitely my favorite. When I first came to George Fox, I didn’t expect to see any signs of Hawaiian culture or many students from Hawaii. Instead, I found many Hawaiian friends and a lot of people who liked Hawaiian culture. As I looked through the Lindgren Gallery, I realized that different cultures can spread farther than one might think. I am grateful to have seen Kimberly Chai’s Hawaiian artwork, and to be reminded on where I come from.