Lea, Goddess Of Canoe Builders Hula Dance Watercolor Art Print 8x10” AJJ Arts

Description

Lea, Goddess Of Canoe Builders Hula Dance Watercolor Art Print 8x10” by artist Alessandra Jann-Jordan at AJJ Arts
Artist’s inspiration:
This painting is my interpretation of stories I have heard regarding Lea, Goddess of canoe builders in some Hawaiian beliefs. I found the story as it was shared with me by Hawaiian friends inspiring as it relates to the symbiotic relationship between the elepaio bird (a flycatcher endemic in Hawai’i) and the canoe builders and wanted to paint it.
In the story of Lea, some say that Lea turns into the elepaio bird, and that in this transformed state, she helps the canoe builder choose a suitable tree to fell when they want to shape one into a canoe. The canoe builders pray for the bird’s appearance when they are looking for a tree, and if the bird appears and pecks at the tree, it suggests that it is bug infested and they know not to choose it. If the bird does not peck at the tree, then they select it. Other than to interpret the story and give homage to the elepaio bird, I hope to evoke for the viewer through my painting, the hard work, the stakes involved, and the spiritual blessings that are sometimes sought by Hawaiians during the building of a voyaging canoe, so that it can withstand sailing an open ocean.
Prints are 8x10” and come matted (outer size is 10x12”), printed on archival Watercolor Bright White paper and bagged in clear cellophane bags with a special note addressed to the buyer from the artist.