Tank-“Untitled” (Face of Man)
Ian Kuali’i is a multi-disciplinary artist who was raised in Maui, Hawaii, and currently resides in Berkeley, California. Interested and involved with art from an early age and growing up through the cultural revolution of Hip Hop of the 80s & 90s heavily influenced Kuali’i in the style and subject matter he initially chose to explore as an artist. Self-education coupled, with a 7-year apprenticeship with the legendary artist Doze Green, helped him develop the unique process and voice he is recognized for today.
Kuali’i describes his creative process as a meditative experience of destruction followed by creation. His portraits, journal entries, and scenes are masterfully rendered in hand-cut paper with a blend of loose urban contemporary techniques and collage with found materials. His work is a balance between the rough and delicate and explores ideas of modern progress dependent on a foundation in one’s history. Kuali’i’s art is predominantly influenced by his ancestral ties to the indigenous people of the Southwestern United States and Hawaii, as well as occult symbolism, mysticism, global politics, and themes of urban decay
Kuali’i’s Untitled contribution to Dreamland depicts three beautiful immigrant faces representing our relatives of Indigenous Mexico, India, and Africa. The original artwork was rendered in hand-cut paper that was scaled up and painted onto one of our repurposed fiberglass water tanks.
Instagram: @iankualii
Artist Website: http://www.wall-therapy.com/ian-kualii
