Exhibition Review Nā Māla: Layered Landscapes of Kona Coffee Heritage, curated by Mina Elison. Donkey Mill Art Center, Kona, Hawaiʻi, October 24, 2020 – December 12, 2020.

Abstract

One such place on Hawaiʻi island where the arts are being pushed into new directions is the Donkey Mill Art Center (DMAC), a community art center founded by the Hōlualoa Foundation for Arts and Culture (HFAC) and located in the town of Hōlualoa, in the ahupuaʻa (a type of Hawaiian land division) of Keauhou, in the moku (district) of North Kona. Although the institution’s name is unassuming, connoting the region’s coffee history and honoring the historic Donkey Mill that serves as the flagship building and campus of the organization, DMAC functions as a vital center of creative production in this part of Hawaiʻi island. Throughout the year, DMAC organizes classes, demonstrations, workshops, presentations, and most importantly for this review, exhibitions that celebrate various art mediums, including but not limited to ceramics, drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed media, fiber arts, metal works, photography, and Hawaiian arts. In 2020, Nā Māla: Layered Landscapes of Kona Coffee Heritage, was one of DMAC’s in-house exhibits, organized by Communications Director and Curator Mina Elison.