The Valley Isle
Maui, Hawaii
Relief of Maui, an island formed by two shield volcanoes: Haleakalā and Mauna Kahālāwai. Native koa was used for the island's volcanic landforms and central valley. Frameless resin surrounds the island in Pacific water, positioned to maintain the relationship between land, channel, and open ocean.
Complete topographic composition
Detail of Mauna Kahālāwai
Angled installation view
A close circle of friends commissioned this piece as a wedding gift for a couple who make Maui home. Native koa was chosen because the material could come from the same islands as the story itself, connecting the gift to place through both geography and wood.
The koa was sourced from a Hawaiian mill committed to sustainable harvest and cultural stewardship. Its figure and natural chatoyance were suited to the island’s volcanic surface, bringing movement into the carved landform as light shifts across it.
The resin was cast without a surrounding frame so the island would not feel boxed in. The open edge was chosen to suggest distance, water, memory, and return. Those conditions surround the friendship as much as the island itself.
Artist's Note