Keawala'i, 2017
Back in 1973, I had an epiphany at Keawala'i. It had to do with a sense of timelessness I'd always felt there. The church is 185 years old and has seen many eras of change, yet something remains constant at Keawala'i. Through the decades, the waves have kept coming. Literally, waves roll into Keawala'i cove, waves of generations, eras in Hawaiian culture, pastors and congregations, cycles of drought and plenty, wars and peace times, yet all along Keawala'i holds onto that which is essential. Keawala'i remains steady. The church, in its fortuitous surroundings, inspire epiphanies of timelessness, of the eternal within and without its walls. There are wheels within wheels at Keawala'i, epiphanies within epiphanies. It is a place of worship in a worshipful place.
I vowed back then that I would paint Keawala'i. I studied the composition and found it very illusive trying to capture the subject in a single perspective. I returned many times over the years and could never quite find what I was looking for. One day I ventured out on the southwest side of the point. When I turned to look back, the entire church with its turquoise water lay before me. Palms and kiawe trees framed the middle ground throwing shadows across the scene. Majestic Haleakala towered behind pointing to things greater than ourselves. It captured everything I've always felt at Keawala'i.