Gallery ‘Iolani was established in 1985 in the basement of Hale ‘Iolani by
devoted art faculty and students with no resources to coordinate a gallery program.
In 1991, a permanent gallery curator was hired for the humanities department.
Gallery ‘Iolani now celebrates 30 years of exhibitions at Windward Community
College and is recognized as one of the finest exhibition sites in the state of
Hawai‘i, showing work from local, national and international venues. Although the
majority of exhibits show local artists, in spring 2014, the gallery hosted an exhibit
from Valdez Museum in Alaska, as well as two separate exhibitions from New
Zealand. Other past exhibits have shown contemporary artists from Paris, Kyoto,
and Korea. Every two years the gallery exhibits over 150 student art works from
WCC studio art programs. The popular, annual Christmas Fantasy fundraiser brings
thousands of patrons to the gallery, producing a huge outreach to the community
and funds for the gallery’s UH Foundation account.
Gallery ‘Iolani also serves as a teaching facility for students studying in the Gallery
Design and Management class to prepare them for employment in Gallery ‘Iolani, as
well as other galleries and museums. Coordinating with members of the gallery
advisory board and UH Mānoa museum studies program, the gallery occasionally hosts
exhibits to mentor emerging young artists in the community.
Gallery attendance brings 5,000 to 6,000 visitors each year and gallery events are
coordinated with large theatre productions, the Palikū Arts Festival and WCC
Ho’olaule‘a, which functions as a marketing tool for the college, as gallery events
lead people to seek information about classes and other WCC offerings. Giving
local residents opportunities for cultural and educational programs further
enhances the role of the community college.
Gallery exhibitions also supplement art courses by showing real art in addition to
lectures, textbooks or video and other presentations about art. Instructors from
many disciplines also often utilize an exhibit to supplement courses. Producing a
variety of exhibits with diverse appeal welcomes all groups of people, cultures, and
ages, which is important to the community since many art galleries often serve
only a small elite segment of the population without regard for the interests of the
whole community. Thus, Gallery ‘Iolani offers a spectrum of enticing events,
designed to make the gallery a gathering place as a pocket of culture and
education within the community and campus.
