Our Sea of Islands Exhibition

In accordance with Hawai‘i Revised Statute 103-8.5, the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA), Art in Public Places Program is requesting qualifications from individual artists for artwork to be featured in the Our Sea of Islands art exhibition hosted at Capitol Modern: The Hawai'i State Art Museum. Through this RFQ we intend to establish a qualified pool of professional artists for consideration.

A phrase coined by scholar and cultural practitioner Epeli Hauʻofa, “Our Sea of Islands” is an oft-quoted reference to a redirection in the perspectives of the islands in the Pacific. Rather than considering these islands as an exotic other, Hauʻofa challenged the world to see the Pacific region as a metropolis for engagement of all kinds. We consider the exhibition, Our Sea of Islands, to be one that uses engagement as the cornerstone not only for the resulting presentation of artworks, but also for the very foundation of those pieces or performances from conception to fabrication to manifestation.  

Exhibition and Site Information 

Sites for artwork include the ‘Ewa Gallery of Capitol Modern: The Hawai‘i State Art Museum. There are opportunities for three-dimensional freestanding sculpture, two-dimensional images translated into durable material, or similar objects that elevate the culture of the artist. Specific locations will be determined by exhibition staff and program administrators. Please see the link for the recommended object transportation plan to Capitol Modern (The Hawai‘i State Art Museum) if there are questions regarding the possible size of objects that are able to be moved throughout the facility.  

Please note that this exhibition will showcase pieces selected by FestPAC Heads of Delegation, in addition to pieces from this juried selection. 

Application Requirements

Artists may submit two to four pieces for review. Please include at least two high-resolution professional photos for each object you are submitting. 

This call is open to submissions of any medium, inclusive of both contemporary and heritage art objects.

Submissions should align with the central themes of Epeli Hauʻofa’s “Our Sea of Islands,” which centers issues related to Pacific identity, oceanic connectivity, and cultural resilience. 

Eligibility Criteria

This call is open to artists Indigenous to the following Pacific Island nations or territories, including American Samoa, Australia, Cook Islands, Easter Island (Rapa Nui), Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Hawaiʻi, Kiribati, Republic of the MarshalI Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand (Aotearoa), Niue, Norfolk Islands, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Island, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, and Republic of China (Taiwan).