ART AT LARGE 3.0
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

March 2019-undetermined

Polipoli Spring State Recreational Area is roughly 6,000 feet above sea level on the slopes of Haleakalā, Maui. Originally home to a native forest featuring koa and ‘ōhiʻa lehua, among others, the trees were completely decimated by the turn of the 20th century thanks to foreign impositions and a combination of trade and overgrazing cattle. In an effort to replant the forest, trees of high economic potential were favored over those with ecological value.

Walking through the natural fog belt today brings one past introduced redwoods and around trees recently burnt by a large fire in 2007 or knocked down by Hurricane Iselle in 2014. Change has different temporalities, made visible after decades of land misuse or always-fluctuating weather. One can only imagine what this forest might look like even in the near future as the world warms.

Wheatpaste installation by Megan Bent.

Installation photos by Kainoa Reponte.