the Norae Shanty

2012-01-24T15:23:00.000-08:00

Back on the ice! The Karaoke action returns to the Art Shanty Projects and Medicine Lake for one brief night on Wed. January 25th, 2012 at 8:30 pm. The One Room SchoolHouse Shanty will be hosting songs and mayhem.

CONSTELLATION

2011-05-01T18:01:00.001-07:00

The Norae Shanty will be open as part of Constellation: A backyard art expedition on Sat. May 28th from 6 pm - 10 pm (Sun. tba). Please come on over and join in the song exchange, "all plays" and a potential "rock-block". There are many cool projects happening throughout this weekend so be sure to check out the website and list of all the cool happenings.

Rebuild...

2010-11-22T12:03:00.001-08:00

The Norae Shanty has been given a new life and is now installed in my back yard as my winter studio. I've given it an additional 3 feet in width, a new roof, and wood siding to dress it up a bit. I've gone back to working on a series of oil paintings and want to keep all solvents out of the house for kaelani's sake. It will, at times, still be used as a vessel for some karaoke workshops and the occasional guys night rock-block.

One Year...

2009-04-15T11:15:00.000-07:00

Wow, its only been a year since my Intersections Residency at UH. It seems like so long ago. I guess 2008 was an intense and eventful year all around. The loss of a parent and the birth of a child can skew ones perception of time.

I checked back one year and saw that I had posted about going to the beach with the kawabata family, and seeing whales playing in the ocean. Those were magical and memorable times. I hope that our daughter Kaelani will have an opportunity to experience this for herself one day with her parents.

I plan to instill in her a deep appreciation and value for all things karaoke. To anyone out there whom might catch this, thanks for sharing in the amazing norae process.

Wed. Jan. 28 hours changed...

2009-01-27T11:33:00.000-08:00

Hey folks, the Shanty will be open from 6pm to 10pm on Wed. Jan. 28th instead of the previously posted hours. Thanks and hope for a mild warm up!
-hapa9

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

2009-01-18T15:51:00.000-08:00

hey folks we had some unfortunate electrical difficulties.
but we should be good as gold on wednesday. sorry for any disappointment today.

happy shanty going.

Norae bang shanty togethor.

2009-01-10T12:27:00.000-08:00

Word YO!!!!
Norae shanty is up and we are ready to for the big opening weekend. wahooooo@!!!!!!!!

BIG THANKS to........BEN,KURT,JOSE, and as always the man that helps make any of this possible... MIKE HOYT the master of shanty-ness oh and to david for towing the shanty to her home for the next few weeks. ohs mys goodnessesesesesesese...

excited.. for the JAN 17 opening.. come one come all and sings us some tunes luvs.

Norae Bang Shanty 2009 OUT ON THE ICE SOON>>>!!!!!!

2009-01-04T14:12:00.000-08:00

NORAE BANG SHANTY TIMES::::

WEDNESDAY 3pm-9pm

FRIDAY 3pm-9pm

SATURDAY 12pm-6pm

SUNDAY 12pm-6pm

We set up the Norae on Sat, Jan 10th. IN the morning. we should be up and running before the 17th..
WE WILL BE DOING MANY PRIVATE PARTIES THIS YEAR!!!! SEE BELOW

If you would like to schedule a private karoake party for you and your loved ones, or co-workers, or friends...!!!!!! These are the Requirements:

-Three hour Party for $75 dollars (suggested Donation) this covers gas, propane, our time......battery power.

-Shanty fits a max of 10 People.... we cannot be having wild parties out on the Ice so we pretty much have to stick to 10 people!!!! Unless it is during the day time and we have scheduled your party at that time.

-Some suggested nights and times are:

Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday....Evenings...
Times.....7-10pm
afternoon times can be arranged but you must contact us for arrangment.
Contact to set up your private party..(612)-423-3747

You wont want to miss your opportunity to do this.. Get a bunch of people to pitch in and come have the Private karoake party of Your Winter dreams.......

Taffi and I (HOMERr) have just finished some minor shopping for the shanty construction. We got some darling candles for the evenings of song in the shanty and delightful screws to hold the shanty togethor... how exciting...!!!!!!!!

WE LOVE SCREWS THAT HOLD THINGS TOGETHOR>!

we are also busy developing our t-shirts which will be done by local artist and stylist MISSY (visit this lady at REWIND cause its to die.. for ) and of course buttons Provided by the lovely JENNY>> and from what I have heard Missy has done the t-shirt design well, and its so terminally cool that most of the world will die when they purchase one. Not to mention the fact that in like two years it will be a collectors item because of our ultimate coolness and Minneapolis famous stardom..!!!!!
We also have new songs that we will be purchasing (legally) and some updated PR material that is sure to make your skin glow and eyes water with delight.
For reals you are gonna want one of our posters cause its just the cutest!!! and sure to go down in art shanty poster history.

There will be five artists this year out in our shanty. Each artist will provide at least five Small pieces that will be featured and displayed weekly on one of our superstar shanty walls.... Were working on a installation for the outside of the shanty but thats in the works for the current moment.
More info onthe way....!!!!!!

*****LOVES AND HUGS!!

TERMINAL COOLNESS

Art Shanty season approaching fast!

2008-12-29T15:39:00.000-08:00

Dear Ice House Karaoke enthusiasts,

The 2009 season of the ArtShantyProjects is a few weeks away. We should have sufficient ice to get our shacks out onto Medicine Lake.

This year I will not be participating in much ASP, Norae action but rest assured the Norae Shanty will continue to rock throughout the 5 week exhibit. Thanks in most part to this years super KJ team of Jesse Siegel and Taffi Vagilante.

Enjoy the project and hopefully I'll make it out for a few songs.
best,
Mike

Projects Dates January 17th through February 14th.

Bringing down the house...

2008-10-11T14:27:00.001-07:00

I got a sweet call from J-Ham as I was getting on I35 heading south toward home after a long week of work. It was news, rather sad news, that they were assembling yesterday evening (Hawaii time) to strike the Norae Shanty. J-Ham was curious as to what would be a good send off song as they were planning to sing karaoke outside while taking the shanty down. It was a sweet and sad way to hear it was going down.

I could not come up with a good song other than the songs that are always sung in the Norae Shanty (love shack, bohemian rhapsody,etc.) so I threw out The Smiths as I knew Gabe from Papa Lucks would appreciate that. We had a few good Smiths "Rock Blocks" during my short run in HI. I heard from J-Ham that she and Jeff both showed up with their Rock Block shirts on, pretty sweet!

After we hung up I quickly texted back that there should definitely be some Prince, preferably Purple Rain.

Lets hope it all came down easily and nobody got hurt by falling speakers or sharp corrugated metal. To all my HI peeps, I'll be singing one for you tonight. Please send pictures!

-hapa9

UnConvention installation

2008-08-13T15:09:00.000-07:00

During the Unconvention at Peavey Plaza, Art Shanty Projects and Kulture Klub Collaborative will install a shanty base-camp for various public arts activities. These activities will respond to the unconvention themes of non-partisan intersection of participatory media and participatory democracy by inviting artists and youth experiencing homelessness to engage the public in workshops and presentations including; free workshops where the public creates personalized stenciled lawn signs and flags, as well as letter pressed playbills, guerrilla cinema projections of videos created by homeless teens, Auto ethnographic guided tours led by artist and youth.

There are shirts available...

2008-06-25T15:05:00.000-07:00

Yes friends, we have shirts once again. My dear friend Paul at Elpis Enterprises helped me print another round of shirts in sm, med, lg, xl. They are printed on gilden 5000 cotton t-shirts and the price is $15 each. email if interested because the are going to go quick!

Carry on, carry on...

2008-05-12T12:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks for a great residency. This clip says it all...
-hapa9

Back on the main(?)land.

2008-04-28T00:53:00.000-07:00

Yep, I arrived safe a few days ago. I suffered a heavy dose of food poisoning from a little sushi joint in Hilo. It was the first time I had puked on a plane in my life, thankfully I made it to the bathroom in time. Unfortunately it has hung with me for a few days, I'm beginning to think it might be stomach flu, but who knows...

When I got back I was greeted with rainy 40 degree weather, and the next day it snowed. An awful homecoming. But the weather, like the tainted raw fish churning in my stomach, will pass and give way to warmth as Spring officially returns to Minnesota. Its good to be home.

Big Island, short time

2008-04-28T00:08:00.000-07:00

Before heading back to Minnesota, Jean Pitman and I took a quick trip to the Big Island to experience life on another island. These pictures are randomly ordered. but it will give you a glimpse of what can be seen in two short days on the Big Island if you travel with someone whom is willing to just see everything and anything. Here are a few shots of a wondrous short stay...
Silly sign (I think its legit) in the middle of a lava field. We passed by on our walk to see the lava flow into the ocean. In the upper left corner you can see the steam venting down the volcano slope.
We stopped and walked along the black sand beaches, the sand is all volcanic.

When we first arrived in Hilo we found a sweet little 50's malt shoppe, with some original sign age. Pretty sweet! A total time capsule of a dinner.

We stayed one night at an amazing little privately run Hostel called the Holo Holo Inn located right in Volcanoes Village. A bed was $21 per night in the dormitory. Just one mile from Volcanoes National Park main entrance.

Some random fern budding. I just thought it was gorgeous and a little scary looking. The ferns were larger than a two story house.

This is a shot inside an old lava tube. You could literally drive a car through it at most points. Pretty amazing that this was a chamber for flowing lava.

Here are some steam vents. The trade winds were really low so the Vog (Volcanic smog) was at a dangerous level. They ended up closing the park later that afternoon.

A night shot of the actual lava flow as it poured into the ocean. It created this gigantic plume of glowing steam that just billowed and ungulated hundreds of feet into the air. It was really hypnotic to watch.
A random pug we met at a roadside coffee stand. He was happy to have company.

A shot inside one of the two main craters at the VNP. There are actually people walking along the basin of the crater. It stretches a few miles from end to end and the cupped edge along the base is 50 ft tall.

Jean resting during our walk along devastation trail. This huge section is just south of the crater and is a preserved wasteland.

Another two shots of devastation trail.

We stopped for gas somewhere along the southern coast of Hilo to fill up our Jeep. Gas was $3.96. At least it was full service.

Some wonderfully funky hybrid architecture in Hilo. This was now a Christian church.
We drove down along the southern coast of the Big Island after VNP was closed down. Jean noticed that there was a road called South Point, which led to the southern most point of the United States of America. So we went to check it out. It was a spectacular place to chill out for a few hours.

Here is a shot of Jean at South Point. The road had collapsed some time ago.

A few more images of the lava fields and black sand beach. People carry coconuts out into the lava fields and plan them along the path.

The final norae shanty night wound... I had a sub woofer fall from a shelf and split my head open. People were just rocking the shanty so hard that it started coming apart around me.

Tree canopy. Just pretty.

Tree molds. During a lava flow the lava came up through the tree stumps in a grove and burned them from the inside out, leaving these statued molds of the former trees. You can even see the hollowed out trucks when you look down into them.

More Lava field shots. Lovely texture everywhere. It still looks liquid and flowing. Its amazing to see nothing but this black bubbled char stretch for miles around you.

Last Norae Night!

2008-04-19T12:21:00.000-07:00

Well folks, the Norae Shanty came to a close last evening but I'm proud to say we went out in a momentous way. The shanty started rocking at 5 pm and ended up running until close to midnight. It was not without a few minor bumps (thuds) as the sub woofer fell off a shelf and conked me right on the head. A little blood and a minor scare but I was fine after taking a look at it. Someone said that you have to bleed a little for your art. I did my share last night. In the end a bunch of people stuck around and sang through the night. It was a great close to a really fabulous project.

Thanks again to the UH art faculty and students, the Intersections program, Jean Pitman, and in particular Wendy Kawabata and Jaimey Hamilton for their hard work and guidance.

Shut um down, shut um shut um down.

Manoa Valley

2008-04-18T16:18:00.001-07:00

I made a stop over in Manoa Valley located just behind the UH campus. I'm not sure why I have not gotten over there more often, its a stunning and serene valley setting. Sarah mentioned that she saw this little Korean lunch spot that looked like it was a place locals frequented so I popped in for lunch. It was simply perfect.

I ordered a BiBimBap and a pepsi. $6.00. There is really nothing that can even come close to eating a $6 lunch sitting on a patio looking at the side of a mountain range. What a perfect little spot.
I had to find a park to sit in so I could digest my lunch before peddling back over to campus. Manoa Valley has a quaint small town feeling to it. Very relaxing and mellow.

Hawai'ian Biennial Exhibit

2008-04-18T16:04:00.000-07:00

I was given a chance to check out the Hawai'ian Biennial exhibit at the Contemporary Museum. All in all this was a really solid show. It was great to see what local contemporary artists were doing. I was particularly taken by the work of Yida Wang and Eli Baxter.

Yida Wang installation.

Eli Baxter installation. Cut and sculpted recycled inner tubes. Seriously meticulous.

Honolulu Star Bulletin coverage!

2008-04-17T18:28:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, we made some more press. This time we broke into the fashion blogosphere! Pretty great blurb by Nadine Kam. I really like the video and how its edited. She made it sound like we gave her the hard sell, but we all knew she secretly had to let out her inner diva.

Back on UH campus! A few art classes...

2008-04-16T12:49:00.001-07:00

One it gets rolling there is no stopping the karaoke action. Please don't skip classes, your education is important (and expensive).

Some good line dancing outside. I think this was during "New York New York", or maybe "Volare".
Gabe stuck around for a few songs, some Cash and air guitar action.
Starting it all off. It always takes one brave soul.

Some curious onlookers. Some were too timid to enter, but hung around to check out the action.

UH Manoa Shanty Hours

2008-04-15T03:10:00.000-07:00

We have reinstalled the Norae Shanty at UH Manoa near Papa Luck's and the Art Department. We have posted some public hours this week. Please stop in to share in a song or two.

Norae Shanty’s
Hours of Operation:

Tues. April 15th 3-5 pm;
Thurs. April 17th 1–2 pm;
Friday April 18th 6-8 pm

soooo yeah, whales...

2008-04-15T02:55:00.000-07:00

I was granted a wonderful day on the north shore at a spot called Sharks Cove. A hotbed for snorkeling and swimming. We swam with the beautiful fish and I found myself laughing a giddy laughter underwater because it was such a surreal experience. Later, we caught a group of humpback whales frolicking off shore. In a rare moment like out of a Oceanographers documentary we caught a whale breach the ocean surface. It was the most spectacular thing I've ever seen in nature. It looked like a entire section of a locomotive erupting from the ocean surface. And then it just crashed down into the water and disappeared. They played for another hour, flapping tails and blowing fountains of water. Truly a surreal experience.

One of my favorite things was that I had the fortune to spend the day with one of the most magical 4 year olds you could ever meet. And after 10 minutes, he was completely bored with the whales. It was so funny to think that whales were mundane for this young man. Its amazing to think that the ocean is so available to everyone here. Leisure is just sort of a necessity here, and how could you possibly ignore the sun, the ocean? I sliver of paradise in your everyday routine is a true gift.

Chinatown - Fort Street Market

2008-04-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

Korea everywhere in Hawai'i

2008-04-11T04:08:00.001-07:00

I've met a lot of great Korean people here, Korean Nationals, adoptees, and Korean Americans. Its so odd, when I step outside of the Lincoln Hall where I am staying on campus I am greeted by these beautiful Pagodas. Korean studies is located right next door to where I am staying, and it always throws me off temporarily because I feel like am momentarily back in Korea.
Its kind of an ironic reminder of how Korea has been a huge influence in my life and work.

Kapiolani Community College

2008-04-11T03:44:00.000-07:00

Our visit to KCC was another great success, although accessing the space on campus was a bit of a challenge. Our crew handled the tricky driving with great skill.

Here is Carl leading his class in song. Its always great when your professor kicks off the jams! What a great class.

This young man is known as the "Korean Elvis" which was embroidered right on his cap! And he was good!
The shanty was rocking up until the truck came to tow it back to UH. I have found that people in HI are really great singers, and I mean really above average karaoke crowds.

Halau Ku Mana School visit

2008-04-08T22:15:00.001-07:00

We took the Shanty on a trip to Halau Ku Mana, a local charter school focusing on Hawai'ian culture. Here we met a large group of 6-8 graders and explained the project before starting to sing.

They turned out to be enthusiastic singers and incredibly fun! I wished they had more time to spend in the shanty. This class welcomed me with a traditional Hawai'ian chant which almost brought me to tears. It was so beautiful and moving.

Many had to look on from the outside and wait their turn. They were all very patient and supportive of one another. It was really a great experience. You could tell they had much love and respect for their teachers.

Here are a few of the older 11th grade students during the lunch hour. They really got the shanty rocking. Sometimes high schoolers take a little while to warm up to things that are out of the ordinary. But they were awesome.

Street Fighter

2008-04-08T10:41:00.001-07:00

Here is the rattle can camouflage Huffy that Dennis lent to me for the duration of the trip. It ain't fast but it gets to the grocery store and back. The basket is hilarious. Sarah rigged it up with some zip ties, but anything heavier than a pair of flip-flops will make it drag on the front tire. Its kind of a death bike at night with no flashers, no reflectors, and no helmet. And folks here don't care much for bikers while driving. Oh 1986 Bridgestone 300, how I miss thee...

Insulation/sound buffering

2008-04-08T10:34:00.000-07:00

Here is some pictures of a recent addition, sound dampening tiles (foam cooler lids). These were scavenged by Jaimey and Miles at the Hawai'i State Surplus. Apparently, there are stacks and stacks of these cooler lids and I am told represent Hawai'i because of all the tourism.

Press! ArtMania makes a splash in the Honolulu Advertiser

2008-04-07T22:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a quick article about the event. I think it is a good representation of the hard work and effort made by the students and faculty. Its really great to see students pull off an event of this scale. It makes you confident in their ability to go out and do really successful DIY projects, exhibits, etc. That is what drives an arts community and sustains a creative culture.

Dr. Lee in the house...

2008-04-07T22:11:00.001-07:00

I had to work an image of my friend Dr. Rich Lee into my lecture. I wanted to show the BBQ sled buffet action. When the slide of the iron skillet full of Korean stew on the grill came up I heard a few peoples stomachs grumble with hunger.

Love Shack

2008-04-07T21:47:00.000-07:00

A favorite Norae Shanty song! Notice the bounce in the frame.

2008-04-07T21:34:00.000-07:00

Testing Dan's rolling sculpture, insanely fun!

2008-04-07T21:20:00.001-07:00

ARTMANIA 2008! Although we had a lot of rain, it did not stop this great event from being a huge success. The crowds were super busy and constant all day long.

Morning Shanty rockers kicking off the day.
The shanty in its campus location in front of Papa Lucks.

Jaimey Hamilton giving a short lecture on the Norae Shanty and Hit and Run karaoke. Nice image of Kari rocking the tiger embroidered one-piece snow suit.
Rick's amazing MFA thesis exhibit just happened to coincide with the ArtMania. Perfect timing for him and his beautiful steel work.

Here are some folks playing with Dan's rolling sculpture, this thing was so insane! I'll be posting a short clip soon.

FIRST FRIDAY! What an amazing night.

2008-04-05T18:29:00.000-07:00

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR HELPING MAKE THIS PROJECT A SUCCESS! Huge thanks to The Arts at Mark's Garage, CoffeeLine, and Re-Use Hawai'i. Thanks to all of the students and faculty in the UH Manoa Art Department. This project would not have been possible without everyones hard work and participation.

Here is a great shot from the truck cab of Jeff riding as one of our two bicycle chaperone's. They rode behind the shanty as we transported it from UH Manoa to Arts @ Marks Garage in Chinatown.

We setup shop and the folks at Marks Garage were amazing hosts. Jeff and I traded off with some air guitar backup. I was rocking the Sabbath as he took the flying-V outside. I want to find a way to brink this thing home! This was compliments of students in the fiber class. It got a lot of heavy use last night.

After things got rolling, the scene was mad. People were waiting in line for a shot at the mic. Mark's Garage had enough space set aside for some good loitering. As I was standing on the sidewalk I caught a quick celebrity sighting as Jin walked right past. I should have had him and his lady friend sing.

Crowded and happy. Lots of "all play" songs in the end.

This is just a great shot. I like that someone allowed a passerby to help out in a song.

Day 3: Big Push

2008-04-03T02:44:00.000-07:00

It all starts with some breakfast at the CoffeeLine run by our new friend Dennis. He serves free food to all Intersections visiting artists and has done so since the program began. What an incredibly generous and interesting fellow to get to hang out with. A true community leader as well as a great cook.

Here is a great overhead shot from Jean Pitman. Lots of great group work was accomplished including roofing the shanty (I'm way too heavy for this process), adding 80% of the metal siding, the addition of three benches, and a simple ramp. Its really looking like a solid structure.

Here is a detail of Frank and Jeff's sweet sliding door system using parts from exercise equipment and an old door that Jeff and Dan found on the street.

A great shot of the shanty waiting for a test tow.

Amazing progress!

2008-04-01T20:32:00.000-07:00

Blue posts, four walls, and working windows!

Out great new sign to let students know what all the activity is about.

Here is a good shot from the second floor of teams of people preparing to get with it.

Jeff and one of our fancy new windows. He already wants to be singing.

We made huge progress today including 4 walls. Will post some excellent pictures later tonight sometime after my lecture. Everyone in the art department was out helping today, amazing stuff. Big Thanks to Dan, Mark, and Frank for leading teams to design and frame the different walls.

parallel blog

2008-04-01T02:44:00.000-07:00

The Intersections program has a parallel blog running with different photos and posts by faculty and students. You can check it out HERE. My largest looming question before I pass out for the night; will this make my dear friend Dr. Lee giddy, or will he be a dual blog hater? Only time (and a new blog post) will tell.

Building, day two.

2008-04-01T02:16:00.000-07:00

We had a a very productive day today. The shanty is starting to take shape. We went over to Re-use Hawai'i and picked up another large load of materials in Miles little Mazda PU. The place is simply amazing. Its a perfect fit for a project like this. We picked through the raw materials, AJ and Miles worked on cutting up some of the sheet metal, and we found a few sweet frosted basement windows.

After unloading the materials we took a bit of a lunch break at Coffee Line, a great little local spot where the owner (Dennis) offers free lunch to all of the visiting artists for the length of their stay. Today he had some fresh lasagna with a side salad. Simply stated, it was really good comfort food.

We got back to the campus and the work began. Jeff made some great signs to draw student volunteers. Frank Sheriff and AJ helped build the shanty floor and basic foundation. Jean and Sarah stopped in later that afternoon and we worked on some support structures. All in all it was a good day of work and felt like we were able to get a general framework established. Tomorrow we begin working on the walls and in the evening I have my first public lecture at UH.

Snow? Huh.

2008-03-31T10:48:00.000-07:00

I just browsed the Minneapolis Star Tribune and noticed that the National weather service has predicted a storm of 8" moving into the Twin Cities metro area. I love a fresh coating of snow in April.

Building begins

2008-03-31T00:31:00.001-07:00

This morning I was introduced to the Art Department. Wendy and Jaimey helped get me acclimated and introduced me to some key people. I met a team of great artists today whom have been gathering materials for the past several weeks. Dan and Jeff were really helpful in getting some lumber ripped and sorted. Much of the materials came from Re-use Hawai'i which is an amazing resource for this project.

We tracked down the trailer from the Science and Engineering department. Jaimey borrowed a truck from Al to tow the trailer, he is a student in the glass department. Its kind of amazing how everyone is willing to chip in, lend a car, move some materials, drive you to the hardware store...

After work Jaimey, Jeff, Jean, Sarah and I hit up Jimbo's, a really amazing Japanese noodle shop. The good food vibe is still flowing. Tomorrow we are making another trip to Re-use Hawai'i before a long day of building. I think we should be able to get a lot done in the next few days.

Food, what makes travel great.

2008-03-30T02:19:00.000-07:00

Ahi summer rolls.

Leonards Malasadas. Custard madness!

the Kimchee selection at the local grocer.

roadside BBQ chicken.

grilling some Korean BBQ

arrival, lots of food, really tired.

2008-03-30T01:51:00.000-07:00

Well, after 13 hours of flights and layovers, I finally made it. Sarah had arrived a few hours before me and her and our good friend Jean Pitman were waiting for me in the baggage claim.

The first thing that hit me coming through the tunnel from the plane was the thick humid air. Like August in Minnesota. The second thing was the intense fragrant air, like a bouquet of flowers constantly resting under my nose, but not in an intense, sharp, fake perfume way. More subtle and full. Its just the beginning of what I can only call a two day sensory overload.

Since settling into the guest housing on campus, we've mostly eaten amazing food thanks to Jean and her knowledge of the good food spots. In one and a half days its been a steady course of Japanese-Hawai'ian summer rolls, ahi-tar tar, garlic ahi, Filipino pastries, shrimp truck food, rice cake dessert, korean bbq, shaved ice, and a few ice cold beers.

Today, after getting a campas tour by Jean, we hit the North shore. Jean drove us up in her mid 80's (?) Volvo sedan. Along the way we snacked on some amazing roadside food and stopped at a few scenic overlooks. We stopped at one of the beaches along the north shore, sat out on the beach and swam for a good hour in the ocean. It was pretty busy, full of families and surfers, but overall it was really nice. The temps remained in the mid 80's all day which forced you into the ocean to cool yourself down. It was great watching the waves slowly roll and break. Truly a beautiful way to spend a few hours. My Hawai'ian skin showed its normal rate of transformation as I quickly turned as dark as the locals.

Tonight we are back chilling in the room and trying to stay awake so that we can adjust to the jet lag. Tomorrow I will hook up with Jaimey Hamilton and Wendy Kawabata to look at the materials and trailer options. I hope to have a solid project plan set by the end of tomorrow. Time to get to work!

About the project...

2008-03-26T13:48:00.000-07:00

Minnesota based artist Michael Hoyt is the University Hawai'i Manoa Intersections Program Artist In Residence for April, 2008. Hoyt will work with UHM art department students to build a Norae (karaoke) Shanty that will be temporarily installed in public venues thru ought the island of Oahu.

UHM Intersections Program and The ARTS @ Marks Garage announces the following events:

Public lecture by Michael Hoyt, Intersections artist in residence.
UHM Art Building Auditorium
April 1 @ 7:30pm

Michael Hoyt's Norae Shanty will be installed outside Marks Garage. Visitors will be invited to share in the unique and evocative process of singing karaoke, actively creating the emergence of new pathways for connecting to diverse peoples and communities through divergent, yet supportive, means of communication.

Marks Garage, 1159 Nuuanu Avenue, Honolulu, HI April 4, 2008, 5pm to 9pm

Michael Hoyt¹s Norae Shanty will also be open to the public between April 4th and April 18th at locations to be announced.

Bio:
Michael Hoyt is a visual artist with national exhibition record in painting and installation art. He grew up in Minnesota and received his BFA from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Hoyt has received grants and awards from the MN State Arts Board and the Jerome Foundation and has been a past artist in residence at Roanoke College in VA.

As an Asian-American artist, Hoyt attempts to illuminate the hyphen, and aspires to create work that represents the enormous richness, contradiction, and vitality that defines the American experience, in order to stimulate debate, raise awareness, and build bridges within and beyond community.

Hoyt is currently the Executive Director of the Minneapolis based Kulture Klub Collaborative, an innovative arts organization that partners youth experiencing homelessness with artists and artistic practice, bridging survival with inspiration.

Intersections website: www.hawaii.edu/art/intersections

Special thanks for sponsorship from:

The ARTS @ Marks Garage
The State Foundation on Culture and the Arts The Laila-Twigg Smith Art Fund Hawaii Arts Alliance

Contact:
Wendy Kawabata
Assistant Professor of Art
Chair, Intersections Visiting Artist and Scholar Program Department of Art and Art History University of Hawai'i at Manoa
2535 McCarthy Mall
Honolulu, HI 96822
808-956-5252
wendyak@hawaii.edu

Two days...

2008-03-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

I will be leaving for my residency at the University of Hawaii at Manoa in just over a week. I'm so incredibly excited for this really amazing opportunity. I will continue to update this page throughout my three week residency.