Catalina Museum For Art & History Presents SKIRTING ISSUES: HULA MOVES STATESIDE

Catalina Museum for Art & History will present the exhibition Skirting Issues: Hula Moves Stateside, on view beginning March 18, 2023. Through original artifacts, music, and related ephemera, including historical photographs exploring the Hawaiian craze of the late 1890s to the present. Visitors are invited to dance their way through the gallery and directly into challenging histories of authenticity, American colonialism, appropriation, complicity and resistance.

Hula has been a part of Indigenous Hawaiian culture for hundreds of years. Hula was a way of passing along knowledge from generation to generation. Over the past two centuries, hula has transitioned from a sacred ritual practice to a tourist attraction, becoming a target of appropriation as it gained popularity in American popular culture.

Skirting Issues: Hula moves Stateside uses the iconic image of the hula skirt to explore the fluid space between Hawaiian-based and Hawaiʻi-inspired ideas about hula. "We are delighted to share this unique and important display," said Amy Kuʻuleialoha Stillman, Guest Curator for the exhibition. "In this exhibit, we want to create conversations around cultural appropriation, imposed stereotypes, and cultural appreciation.

On Friday, April 7, the museum will host an exhibition opening event during First Fridays at the Museum. For more information about Skirting Issues: Hula Moves Stateside exhibition at Catalina Museum for Art & History, visit CatalinaMuseum.org/Upcoming-Exhibits.