Wauke, Limited Edition, Giclée Print by Caren Loebel-Fried.
Wauke, by Caren Loebel-Fried, limited edition Giclée from the original hand-colored block print. The materials used for this Giclée were all of the highest quality, printed on acid-free, museum quality, 100% cotton paper, using archival, pigment-based inks. Each piece is signed and numbered by the artist, backed by a white acid-free board, and packaged in a clear re-sealable art bag with a description and a certificate of authenticity on the back.
This block print was created for the exhibit, KAPA RHYTHMS, at Volcano Art Center in Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island of Hawai’i. Paper Mulberry, called wauke, was one of the primary plants used to make bark cloth in old Hawaiʻi. Wauke was originally brought to Hawaiʻi by Polynesian people on canoes. The highly skilled artisans carved patterned beaters for watermarking their cloth and used bamboo stamps dipped in plant dyes to add intricate, colorful designs and patterns. They even added plant perfumes to scent their cloth, creating the most sophisticated bark cloth in the world.
A Hawaiian legend about the origin of wauke tells of Maikoha, who lived with his two daughters, Lau-hu-iki and Laʻahana, in the Nuʻuanu Valley on Oʻahu. He told his daughters, “After I die, bury my body next to the stream.” They did, and from that place grew the first wauke plant.
You can learn more about Caren Loebel-Fried by visiting her bio page here.
