Koloikeao Anthony's ‘Kū‘ena‘ena' watches over Kapiʻolani Park

Yahoo

27-05-2025

HONOLULU (KHON2) — Brand new art pieces have made their debut in Kapiʻolani Park.
An Oʻahu artist's graphic installation depicting kiʻi, or ancestral guardians, was unveiled Sunday, May 25, at the former archery range.
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This is the latest piece in the City's Wahi Pana: Storied Places public art project, in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies.
The art piece was the second 'Wahi Pana' piece unveiled over the weekend.
The installation, named Kū'ena'ena, was created by artist Koloikeao Anthony, which features vibrant, symbolic imagery to represent kiʻi who will 'stand watch' over the land near the installation through a powerful series of graphic panels mounted on existing signposts.
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A ceremony was held Sunday afternoon to commemorate the unveiling of the installation.
'To me, it brings desire to keep on creating, but also it has its ties to the original name of this place,' said artist Koloikeao Anthony.
Set just below the historic Papaʻenaʻena Heiau, Anthony's work challenges popularized tiki imagery and reimagines the presence of Kū, an important figure in Hawaiian belief systems, as a living force in today's world.
Community members joined Anthony in a walk-through of the installation, which transforms overlooked park signage into a site of cultural remembrance and visual storytelling.
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Koloikeao Anthony is a Kānaka Maoli visual artist whose work bridges contemporary design with ancestral memory.
Through public art and graphic installation, his practice seeks to reclaim and re-present sacred spaces, challenging colonial aesthetics and amplifying Indigenous presence.
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