From Kapa to Quilt

By Virginia Beck

Kaua‘i Museum staff is seen here, left to right, Lyah Kama-Drake (education specialist/collections), Michiru Umezu (shop manager), Aunty Uli‘i Castor (sales associate), Kalei Hoffman (sales associate), and Ku‘ulani Keaweamahi (sales associate). Contributed photo

A visit to the Kaua‘i Museum is a journey through time, with hundreds of years of Hawaiian culture and way of life on display. The museum is currently holding an exhibit, “From Kapa to Quilt,” showcasing dozens of masterpieces of Hawaiian quilt-making.

“I believe the earliest one in our collection is from the mid-1800s,” said Chucky Boy Chock, Kaua‘i Museum Executive Director. Then in the late 1800s through the early 1900s, he said, there was a “boom” in quilt-making in Hawai‘i.

The quilts in exhibit at Kaua‘i Museum show how Hawaiians absorbed a Western tradition two centuries ago, and quickly added their own flavor to create styles unique to the Islands.

“From a historical point, the birth of quilting (in Hawaiʻi) began around 1820 when the first missionaries arrived on Kaua’i,” said Chock, adding it was mainly the Ruggles and Whitney families who introduced woven materials and steel needles to Hawai‘i. “Then Hawaiian wāhine were taught the art of patchwork quilting.”

As time moved on, he said, Hawaiian quilt designs were influenced by nature elements, such as ulu (breadfruit) leaves and fruits. Other tropical plant motifs were also introduced to quilt making. Those first Hawaiian quilts usually had a single solid color — mostly green, red or yellow — against a white background. Some quilts also featured the Hawaiian flag or the royal coat of arms.

Kaua‘i Museum staff Lyah Kama-Drake (education specialist/collections) is seen here. Photo by Virginia Beck

“I believe that once the na wāhine learned the art of quilting, they embraced it with their own designs and made it theirs, they took ownership,” Chock said.

Ulu still seems to be the most popular inspiration for Hawaiian quilt designs even today, he said.

“From Kapa to Quilt” opened July 5, and will close September 28. More than 30 quilts are on display, revealing how quilt-making achieved its own style in Hawai‘i. The colorful pieces show both a strong tropical flavor, with kaleidoscopic tropical plant motifs, and Hawaiian pride, with monarchy-inspired designs.

A quilt has basically three main parts: a fluffy batting sandwiched between the top and the back. The top often has an elaborate design, while the back is usually a single piece. The stitching holding it all together is called the quilting.

Quilting is a communal craft, by women working in groups or alone, stitching their work together, or working together on a single large piece. Their hours of patient attention produces durable, washable bedding with skillful ornamentation.

Contributed photo

Before contact with Western civilizations, the closest thing Hawaiians had to quilt was the kapa moe, a layered blanket made out of beaten tree bark (usually wauke).

“Wāhine (women) made cloth from the wauke (mulberry) into bedding and clothing. Other plants used were the ‘ulu, ōpuhe, ma‘aloa, māmaki, ākala, ‘ākalakala and hau,” Chock said.

Besides bedding, Hawaiians created capes and skirts from kapa. They were decorated with patterns on wooden tools, carved and incised with geometric patterns typical in Pacific Island nations. Some of these designs are unique to Kaua‘i. The dyes came from native plants, and marine life. Layers of kapa could be stitched together for warmth and matting.

The arrival of Western cloth and other dyes were assimilated into the communal activities. From this, new skills were learned and adapted. The nature of Hawaiian patterned quilts was then developed by incorporating the silhouettes of tropical plants into organic shapes, leading to a looser interpretation of pattern and craft.

The waving patterns of the ocean, and the curving patterns of the streams became sinuous geometric patterns for the stitching that connected the decorative front piece. Wool was often used for the stuffing once sheep had arrived. It was warm, insulating, and resuming its original fluffiness after washing.

Contributed photo

Quite a number of the quilts in exhibit at Kaua‘i Museum were produced in the early plantation days. Floral methods were adapted to local flowers and plants. Appliqué, a technique which allows a separate fabric decorative design to be stitched to the quilted fabric, allowed innovative patterns which usually radiated from the center point. This center was called the piko — a word used for the navel of a human.

Women would unroll half the quilt, and only the maker could sit on the piko. Other women would work together around the edges and work toward the center. The second half was completed with the same care.

“The Hawaiian quilt collection was donated by the artists, owners and mainly the ‘ohana, or family members,” Chock said. “Being the repository of these treasured quilts, it’s our kuleana (responsibility) to see that they are stored with great care and precaution.”

A detailed booklet available at the museum’s gift shop is a treasure for anyone interested in Hawaiian quilting. It shows the making of quilt and stitching patterns, with text and illustrations by Chris Faye, research by Margaret Lovett and photos by R. F. Wichman.

“From Kapa to Quilt” is on display until Sept. 28 at Kauaʻi Museum in Līhu‘e Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. General admission is $15, seniors and kama‘aina pay $12, and students pay $10. Children 7 and under, and museum members are free.

Visit www.kauaimuseum.org or call (808) 245-6931 for more information, to find out how to become a member or to donate to the museum.