Youth Art Contest Celebrating ‘Ulu 2012
Youth Art Contest Celebrating ‘Ulu
This year's contest entries
Background
The beautiful ‘ulu tree once played a major role in the spiritual and cultural life of Hawaiians and it was a key staple food and a source of wood, craft materials and medicine. ‘Ulu is easily grown and Hawaiians had large field systems that integrated ‘ulu with other crops including kalo (taro), ‘uala (sweet potato), mai‘a (banana), kō (sugarcane) and other important crops. In a mauka region of Kona there was a band of ‘ulu trees ½ mile wide and 18 miles long called the kalū ‘ulu that produced as much as 36,000 tons of ‘ulu fruit per year. Other important ‘ulu groves were located in North Kohala, Hilo, and Puna. ‘Ulu is also nutritionally and culturally important throughout the Pacific (including for the thousands of non-Hawaiian Pacific islanders who make Hawai‘i their home). Modern nutritional analysis shows ‘ulu to be a highly nutritious food that can be prepared in a variety of ways compatible with both traditional and modern tastes.
For hundreds of years before Western contact, traditional Hawaiian breadfruit groves were capable of providing the food value to sustain tens of thousand of people. Today, few of these trees remain. Today, Hawai'i imports about 90% of its food, making it one of the most food insecure states in the nation. Additionally, since the economic downturn of 2008, many families in Hawai‘i lack access to affordable and nutritious food. The Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu project believes that breadfruit is a key to solving Hawaii's food security problems.
Download background pdf file: Linking the Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu—Revitalizing Breadfruit Youth Art Contest to Hawai‘i Content Standards
Breadfruit Festival and Youth Art Contest
Hawai‘i Homegrown Food Network,the Breadfruit Institute of the National Tropical Botanical Garden and Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, are presenting the Breadfruit Festival—Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu at the Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden in South Kona on Saturday, September 29, 2012 from 9:00 am–3:00 pm.
The Breadfruit Festival celebrates the rich culture of breadfruit (‘ulu) in Hawai‘i and the Pacific, raises awareness about the importance of breadfruit for food security and teaches about the many delicious ways to prepare breadfruit.
The Youth Art Contest Celebrating 'Ulu is a part of the educational outreach associated with the festival, celebrating the beauty of the tree and fruit as well as the rich cultural heritage and future role of ‘ulu in Hawai‘i.
The artwork of the 12 Youth Art Contest winners (1st, 2nd and 3rd in each age group) will be displayed in the Youth Art Tent at the Breadfruit Festival on September 29, 2012 at the Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden. Directions to Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, the festival location. Contest judging will be done by Living Arts Gallery in Hawi, North Kohala.
Eligibility and Submittal
The contest is open to all youth artists in Grades 1–12. Entrants must be a full-time residents of Hawai‘i County and must be affiliated with a school, home school group or organization to enter, as the school/organization needs to pre-judge the entries for submission.
Role of School/Organization in Submittal
- School or organization must solicit student entries and choose the first place winner in each division (semi-finalists) for submittal into the island-wide contest. Each school will be able to submit a maximum of four works of art (one for each division.) The divisions are as follows:
- Grades 1–3
- Grades 4–6
- Grades 7–9
- Grade 10–12
Prizes
Contestants in the youth art contest will be competing for valuable prizes.
1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in each age category will win cash prizes ($75, $50 and $25, respectively) donated by Kamehameha Investment Corporation.
The top winner overall will receive a Dolphin Quest Dolphin Encounter for two.
Contact
Please direct any questions about the Youth Art Contest to Fia Mattice at matticef[@]gmail.com (remove the brackets around @!).
Submission instructions
Semi-finalist submissions from schools must be RECEIVED in the mail by Friday, September 14, 2012. Entries should be mailed to Andrea Dean, P.O. Box 1175, Kapaau, HI 96755. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prize winners will be selected in each division and the winning art will be displayed at the Breadfruit Festival on September 29, 2012 the Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden. All submissions will be mailed back if they are not picked up at the festival.
Submission Form
All artwork must have the Submission Form taped to the back of the piece. Any work submitted without the form attached to the back will not be accepted. Download the Submission Form for printing here.
Media
- Art piece must be original work by artist--no prints or giclee.
- Any 2D media.
- Maximum size of 12” x 18”.
- Not mounted or matted.
- Submission Form must be taped to the back of the artwork.
Subject
The main subject of the artwork must be ‘ulu (breadfruit) in Hawai‘i. Some possible educational themes and focus for the artwork are as follows:
- Tree, fruit and/or leaf.
- The kalū ‘ulu—past, present or future (In a mauka region of Kona there was a band of ‘ulu trees ½ mile wide and 18 miles long called the kalu ‘ulu that produced as much as 36,000 tons of ‘ulu fruit per year)
- ‘Ulu in Hawaiian culture: Hawaiian mythology, ‘Ōlelo No‘eau, traditional uses of ‘ulu (see link below)
Resources and Inspiration
- The most comprehensive source of information on breadfruit is the Breadfruit Institute of the National Tropical Botanical Garden (breadfruit.org).
- The Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu website has information about the Ho‘oulu ka ‘Ulu project in Hawai‘i (breadfruit.info).
- Hawaiian Mythology and ‘Ōlelo No‘eau—cultural information compiled by Kumu Ryan McCormack of Kua O Ka Lā Public Charter School.
Contest Organizers
Hawai'i Homegrown Food Network
Breadfruit Institute of the National Tropical Botanical Garden
Amy B.H. Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden
Contest Sponsors
