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Grand RE-Opening Wild Banana Gallery Into Dragon Arts Center 2002. Art on Maui outside the Lahaina art district. Adrianne and David and the wild art happenings and gatherings began on Market Street and then MOVED to The Dragon Arts Center, owned by Jonathan Starr. Wild Banana created an atmosphere of fun and diversity.
Summary & Full Timestamped Transcript Below…
The video centers around the vibrant art scene in Maui, highlighting the opening of the new Wild Banana Gallery location on Main Street and featuring the work of the acclaimed artist Les Niepo. The gallery is portrayed as a dynamic, community-focused space that supports local and international artists while emphasizing the importance of art in both cultural expression and community development. Les Niepo’s art, inspired largely by his travels in the South Pacific, brings unique perspectives and themes, often exploring indigenous cultures, marine life, and human experiences through vivid, original works. The hosts and artists discuss the significance of purchasing art—not merely as a transaction but as a vital support system that sustains artists and nurtures the creative ecosystem. They also reflect on the gallery’s innovative design, which includes movable walls intended for performance art, and the gallery’s role in fostering alternative and experimental art forms. The video concludes with a poetic reflection on the emotional and spiritual power of art, illustrating the gallery’s mission to inspire and unite the Maui community through creative expression.
Highlights
- [03:17] Introduction of Les Niepo and his upcoming show at the Wild Banana Gallery in Maui.
- [05:48] Les Niepo discusses a playful piece dedicated to children of Maroma Lagoon in Solomon Islands, showing his South Pacific influences.
- [11:48] The hosts emphasize that buying art supports the artist’s creative process, not just owning an object.
- [16:15] Wild Banana Gallery’s website (wild-banana.com) is showcased as a unique, artist-managed platform.
- [18:47] The gallery features innovative movable walls designed to support performance and theatrical art.
- [19:44] The gallery promotes alternative art and provides opportunities for emerging Maui artists to gain exposure.
- [22:08] A poetic, emotional reflection on art’s power, inspired by Les Niepo’s trip to Papua New Guinea and his depiction of indigenous rites of passage.
Key Insights
- [03:17] Les Niepo’s Role as a Cultural Bridge: Les Niepo’s art is deeply influenced by his travels to the South Pacific, particularly places like Fiji, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea. His work acts as a bridge between indigenous cultural narratives and contemporary art, enriching Maui’s art scene with global perspectives. This cross-cultural storytelling fosters greater understanding and appreciation of Pacific Islander traditions in a modern context.
- [05:48] Art with Humor and Accessibility: The piece dedicated to children of Maroma Lagoon, featuring playful elements like a crocodile, highlights how serious cultural themes can be communicated through approachable, humorous art. This approach broadens the audience, making indigenous stories accessible and engaging to all ages, especially younger viewers.
- [11:48] Economic and Social Impact of Buying Art: The discussion about art purchases reveals a deeper social contract between collector and artist. Buying art is not just about acquiring a beautiful object but about sustaining the artist’s livelihood and creative process. This insight stresses the importance of patronage in maintaining vibrant cultural communities and the preservation of artistic traditions.
- [16:15] Artist-Driven Digital Presence: Wild Banana Gallery’s website is self-managed by the gallery’s team, reflecting an innovative and hands-on approach to digital engagement. This direct involvement ensures the gallery’s identity remains authentic and dynamic, creating a closer connection between artists, collectors, and the community. It also exemplifies how traditional galleries can evolve by embracing technology.
- [18:47] Multi-Functional Gallery Space: The design of the gallery, with movable walls that can be reconfigured for theatrical and performance art, signifies a modern, experimental approach to gallery spaces. This flexibility allows the gallery to host diverse art forms beyond static displays, encouraging interdisciplinary creativity and attracting a wider range of artists and audiences.
- [19:44] Nurturing Emerging Artists and Alternative Art: The gallery’s commitment to showcasing alternative and emerging artists from Maui highlights its role as a cultural incubator. By providing a platform for unconventional and experimental art, Wild Banana Gallery helps diversify the local art scene and encourages innovative artistic expressions that challenge mainstream aesthetics.
- [22:08] Emotional and Spiritual Dimensions of Art: The poetic narrative about the Papua New Guinea initiation ritual underscores art’s profound emotional and spiritual impact. This segment illustrates how art captures universal human experiences—struggle, transformation, community—that transcend geographic boundaries. It emphasizes art’s power to evoke empathy and connect audiences to deeper cultural and existential themes.
Expanded Summary (800+ words)
The video offers an insightful glimpse into Maui’s thriving art community through the lens of the Wild Banana Gallery’s grand opening in its new Main Street location. The gallery is not just a venue for displaying art but a cultural hub that fosters creativity, community engagement, and artistic innovation.
At the core of the presentation is artist Les Niepo, whose work embodies the gallery’s ethos of originality and cultural connectivity. Niepo’s art draws heavily from his extensive travels across the South Pacific, including Fiji, the Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea. His paintings and sculptures reflect indigenous traditions, marine life, and human rituals, presented with an innovative and sometimes humorous twist. For instance, one highlighted piece dedicated to the children of Maroma Lagoon in the Solomon Islands combines playful imagery with cultural storytelling, featuring a whimsical crocodile that adds a lighthearted element to the work. This blend of humor and cultural depth invites viewers of all ages to engage with the art on multiple levels.
The hosts emphasize that the gallery is a space where art transcends commercial transactions. They stress that purchasing a piece of art is not merely about acquiring an object to decorate a home but about supporting the artist’s ongoing creative journey. This perspective underlines the economic and social significance of art patronage, which sustains artists and, by extension, the cultural vitality of the community. The notion that collectors contribute to a living tradition rather than just owning a product is a powerful reminder of art’s role in society.
The Wild Banana Gallery also embraces the digital age, managing its own website (wild-banana.com) to maintain a direct and authentic connection with its audience. The gallery team, including David and Adrian, is hands-on in designing and updating the site, while technical support from local expert Jessie Francis pushes the boundaries of conventional web design. This innovative approach to digital presence reflects the gallery’s experimental spirit and its commitment to staying relevant in a rapidly changing art world.
A standout feature of the gallery is its flexible interior design, with movable walls that can be rotated or reconfigured to suit a variety of artistic presentations. This adaptability makes the space ideal for performance art, theatrical productions, and immersive exhibits, expanding the traditional boundaries of gallery exhibitions. The gallery’s intention to support multi-disciplinary art forms speaks to its vision of fostering a vibrant and diverse creative ecosystem on Maui.
Throughout the video, there is a strong emphasis on community and the nurturing of emerging artists. The gallery serves as a platform for local talent, providing opportunities for painters, sculptors, and performance artists to showcase their work. This commitment to alternative art forms and new voices enriches Maui’s cultural landscape and promotes artistic innovation. The hosts express excitement about upcoming shows and the potential for the gallery to become a central gathering place for artists and patrons alike.
One of the most poignant moments in the video is a poetic reflection inspired by Les Niepo’s experience witnessing a rite of passage ceremony in Papua New Guinea. This segment moves beyond the visual to explore the emotional and spiritual dimensions of art, conveying themes of struggle, transformation, and communal identity. The narrative evokes a sense of timelessness and universality, illustrating how art can connect viewers to profound human experiences regardless of cultural background.
In summary, the video showcases the Wild Banana Gallery as much more than an art gallery—it is a cultural beacon that celebrates originality, supports artists, and fosters a deep connection between art and community. Les Niepo’s work exemplifies the gallery’s mission to bring unique, culturally rich, and innovative art to Maui. Through its flexible space, digital innovation, and commitment to alternative art, the gallery sets a new standard for how art can inspire, challenge, and unite a diverse audience. The video is a testament to the power of art as a living, evolving force that enriches lives and sustains cultural heritage.
Highlights
- [03:17] Introduction of Les Niepo and his upcoming show at the Wild Banana Gallery in Maui.
- [05:48] Les Niepo discusses a playful piece dedicated to children of Maroma Lagoon in Solomon Islands, showing his South Pacific influences.
- [11:48] The hosts emphasize that buying art supports the artist’s creative process, not just owning an object.
- [16:15] Wild Banana Gallery’s website (wild-banana.com) is showcased as a unique, artist-managed platform.
- [18:47] The gallery features innovative movable walls designed to support performance and theatrical art.
- [19:44] The gallery promotes alternative art and provides opportunities for emerging Maui artists to gain exposure.
- [22:08] A poetic, emotional reflection on art’s power, inspired by Les Niepo’s trip to Papua New Guinea and his depiction of indigenous rites of passage.
Key Insights
- [03:17] Les Niepo’s Role as a Cultural Bridge: Les Niepo’s art integrates indigenous Pacific Islander traditions with contemporary artistic expression, enriching Maui’s cultural scene with global narratives that foster cross-cultural dialogue and understanding.
- [05:48] Art with Humor and Accessibility: By incorporating playful elements in culturally significant works, Niepo makes complex indigenous stories approachable, expanding the audience beyond traditional art circles and inviting engagement from children and families.
- [11:48] Economic and Social Impact of Buying Art: Purchasing art serves as a critical support system for artists, enabling them to continue their creative work and sustaining the cultural ecosystem. This insight encourages patrons to see their purchases as investments in cultural preservation rather than mere consumer transactions.
- [16:15] Artist-Driven Digital Presence: The gallery’s self-managed website exemplifies how artists and galleries can maintain authenticity and innovation in digital spaces, creating direct, meaningful relationships with their audience and adapting to new technologies.
- [18:47] Multi-Functional Gallery Space: The innovative design of movable walls allows for diverse artistic practices, including performance and theatrical art, fostering interdisciplinary creativity and broadening the gallery’s appeal and functionality.
- [19:44] Nurturing Emerging Artists and Alternative Art: Wild Banana Gallery’s dedication to showcasing alternative art forms and emerging talents supports artistic diversity and innovation, positioning the gallery as a vital incubator for Maui’s contemporary art scene.
- [22:08] Emotional and Spiritual Dimensions of Art: The depiction of indigenous rites and the poetic narrative reveal art’s capacity to evoke deep emotional and spiritual responses, connecting audiences to universal human experiences and cultural heritage in meaningful ways.
Transcript
[Music] [Music] don’t let [Music] there is it’s been with you from [Music] your mother your father your sister and brother there is love in this family pick yourself up and get on your feet [Music] don’t let me down [Music] is [Music] is [Music] me [Music] styling yeah he’s incredible our new location on main street oh yeah so this is going to visit your new spot yes absolutely we want everyone to know that very soon the dragon arts center is opening in the wild banana gallery this featured gallery what a terrific
thing we wish you the best thank you jason all the best got a fantastic body of work that you can see all around thank you for joining us here in maui at the wild banana gallery we’re going to sit and do an interview of les on another occasion but we wanted to come and see and have the people of maui see who this brilliant artist is bless people of maui people of maui les niepo well i would like to take this opportunity and to say just simply aloha to all people of the islands of hawaii and i hope they will enjoy my show
well we really appreciate that this is art that takes an extra step outside the marine life box i am so glad to see i hope and expect that it will be an inspiration to lots of artists here who really would like to show art that really is commercial by the nature of its originality you know it’s it’s uh very unique work your influence did you do work uh here in maui no right well when i’m just visiting i was invited for the show but occasionally i do some work on locations like for example fiji islands
or salmon islands most of my work is pretty much influenced by my traveling to those different destinations in south pacific i see i’m looking behind you what’s this piece called well this particular piece was dedicated to children of maroma lagoon located in salomon islands it’s a playful for with a little bit of humor basically for kids you know i’m showing and playing these wonderful kids well it really kind of captured me i noticed that the crocodile up top is that a crocodile it is isn’t it that’s
right very fun well i really look forward to spending more time with you les when we can sit and explore more deeply but uh this is just a little news show so we’re happy to just have you on the news because we are very thrilled to have you come to maui well thank you les niepo people of maui we’re going to take another walk around the show thank you liz aloha wow [Applause] you mean this art doesn’t just get hung up by itself congratulations best of luck here in your new location of the wild banana gallery where are we
here this is 1980 is that right uh yeah it is yes 1980 main street we of maui love the wild banana and we are happy to have you here we’re gonna have to uh have parties like this all the time all the time i’m really looking forward to it we’re gonna we’re gonna do this much more often than we used to that’s right we’re having a great time well we appreciate you and we really like the way you light all your pieces you really do a terrific job dave thanks thanks once we get all our lights up and
running i’ll be really happy they’re almost perfectly set up great thank you thank you 1982 yes we were just talking about how some of the people who were here with us from the very beginning are here with us now and i would just like to say that that includes our cameraman who was here from the very beginning and here we are again i know and in this new space but i want you to know adrian wherever you guys go you’re just a bunch of wild bananas that’s about it this is fantastic
well i want to speak for the people of maui we are all behind the great success of the wild banana gallery thank you for all that you give our community thank you it’s great to see that you’ve taken an artist like les niepo and brought him from the old space to the new space he looks terrific in both places yes yes he does and it’s uh i don’t think it’s a coincidence that we have such an incredible extremely talented artist here with us in this new space well you attract like
i say a lot of wild people people that know how to think and create outside the box yes thank you jason okay back to having fun great job [Music] i’d say they’re a bunch of coconuts but in the wild banana they’re much better and you know what we were just talking about in terms of like people who actually buy artwork are more than just buying a piece a thing to take home they’re actually helping an art i mean help actually helping an artist continue that creative process and that that and that each person
purchase is is making it possible for an artist to be an artist it’s not it’s not the same thing as going out and buying a table or a pair of shoes there’s something another dynamic that happens when somebody actually chooses to to buy a piece of work and and i i was saying that it turned a century i think collectors saw that they would appreciate what an artist was doing and buy a body of work or contribute to that artist specifically and nowadays a little more the tendency is to buy the thing and
take it home and like it and forget the fact that what they were doing as a result of that purchase of something they love is helping carry on a tradition of cultivating the arts you know there’s something there’s something grander something more important to the whole community than just somebody taking home this work and exchanging dollars you know so that for us we like to remind people that that’s what’s going on here is that you’re supporting an artist not just buying a product you
know so well said that we like we want everybody to remember that well you guys exemplify what it is to be supportive of the arts and the artists it’s important it feeds our subconscious it feeds everybody’s creativity even if you can’t paint if you can come in and see a great painting there’s something a rush inside of you an inspiration that you couldn’t maybe paint it yourself but somebody else another an artist can give back to you even if you just go view it you don’t have to buy it just go look at
it you know so that’s what it’s about so we just we just love the art yeah we just love seeing the stuff so thanks for appreciating it too we appreciate that you appreciate it not to be corny but it’s true yeah that’s the tower of i don’t know if you have a name for it we think of it as a waterfall that just creates water you give it it you can give it your own name okay that one’s harry and over there well they’re very beautiful thank you very she’s very energetic and this is her
piece that was in art maui actually right here so a lot of people know have you named that one amy it’s a dope name and so you think people can like go where they want with them you know make him work a little i think people of maui are wondering who’s beautiful we’re gonna see more i totally believe it alternative art that’s the magazine’s whole focus yeah that sounds like you guys brave new art maui hawaii i know what i always like to say alternative art there is no alternative
there you go that’s what uh we actually connected with a guy that big on him right right yes he and he emails us regularly yeah and artists in new orleans and um now somebody in oakland l.a yeah seattle um yeah amsterdam canada franchises a bunch of bananas um yeah we have to sell more french fries here first [Music] can you see the cover this magazine was started by the uh one of the artists from mad magazine oh then it has to be fun it’s um got a fairly small distribution i think only
like eighty thousand for magazines they all are getting onto your website and they’re all they’re awesome what is your website for these people out here wild banana.com visitors and people love the site that’s why they end up contacting us and then we build friendships from there it’s been really outstanding that’s a really unique site because we all we work on it ourselves david does most of the adrian and david collaborate on the design and david does most work on keeping the
thing fresh that’s great that’s really nice and then the skeletal structure of the site and what allows the site to happen is our friend jessie who helps us out too maui computers.com jesse francis jesse jesse francis yeah and he’s really into experimenting with how you use the web and what it looks like he doesn’t like ordinary pages so he challenges us and he’s challenged by us so it’s really kind of an experimental thing that we do together so it’s wild dash banana.com
yes dashes yeah somewhere there’s a wildbanana.com what’s that behind there it looks like a tree but i can’t be a tree i don’t know go check it out and see what it is jason [Music] wow oh yeah casey smith that’s fantastic so you know i see there’s more of casey smith there’s casey smith those are called strange fruit you know when you come down the street you see those those are really sad we’re really kind of worried about car accidents they’re putting a sign at the
bottom of the window that said keep your eyes on the road even though they’ll you know they’ll still be having to look in the windows you’ve done a great job of making this space friendly and exciting really thank you and i like your concept with the walls that move yes customized for each show it allows us to yeah move them around and we hope to use them for theatrical sort of performance art things because they can create stages or scenery that actually spins around you actually turn these
walls and have a completely different set behind that’s the performance so we hope that people start to want to take advantage of what we’ve done here well i wouldn’t worry there are a lot of people oh yeah do you know what they’re they’re scratching at the door all the time so there’s no shortage of artists on maui that’s right i know that all of them appreciate you i know the patrons of the art should come here and check out what you have because this is a great place
they’re missing an art of people that someday and maybe not in the warm future are going to have great success so this is the way to at pick up time absolutely to see something you haven’t ever seen before that’s what we’re really into part of it because there as patrons of the yacht when they buy and promote art that way it creates a future for people i guess that’s kind of your style you know giving people an opportunity exactly not just even ourselves because we’re artists as well so
a lot of this is just to give ourselves a chance and then we realize there’s a lot of artists out there who are very talented and well deserved uh attention from collectors and just people interested in art in general so it’s a great opportunity for the community to really broaden and come together to just see art differently here on maui for sure well it really is terrific like this show you have up here i don’t see any of your art and i’ve seen your art i’ve loved your art
you know i hope you’re gonna do some more actually at the uh in uh november december we’re doing a painter show and that i’ll be presenting at least 10 new pieces so we’re going to bring in a lot of different painters from the island and it’s just all paint so we’re really excited about that at the end of the year are you going to have any paintings uh nothing i i don’t know what is that and i like it that’s a good project we did that during our erotic party actually we had uh
andrew annenberg was painting a live model uh i did a huge face on our nude model and that was actually a great little i think so it wasn’t fun so we have done something along that line that’s great well david well i don’t know how to say thank you for what you do thank you great here’s here’s uh liz and paul james brown walking in the door let’s go go talk to them [Music] spinning scrub clean lift move climb bottles of wine was it lack of sleep or did i really feel the spirits that came to me out of
this painted lake initiation ritual [Applause] ancestral beings played in the night under the red glow of our neon side papa solomon islands vanuatu wailuku while washing the dishes in the tiny bathroom sink the distant yet familiar smell of shame caught me by surprise the urinal stood oddly illuminated under the fluorescent glare greenish yellow stains up my brain this reminds me of that year i lived in the volkswagen where that overcrowded artist loft on 16th and mission or being a kid and living off government
aid grocery bags velveeta load powdered milk and peanut butter i am uncomfortable with the feeling of comfort in these recollections by the end of the ordeal there was nowhere else to go so i cried and cried and cried and cried until i got there i arrived it was real it was gigantic it was a warm wet blanket it covered me stretching out in an infinite radius a heavy liquids ocean that reached back to primitive and far into the unimaginable it was lifetimes the archetype the artist the everlasting
struggle determination and pain the intoxicating power release responsibility there we were all of time all there together swimming and drowning in our sweet tragic scene marked i am somehow different now and there is an ending here but i don’t know what it is yet very good [Music] this piece was inspired by a trip that less took to papa new guinea where he witnessed two young men going through a rite of passage ritual in this case this painting is actually depicting two women three days of celebration
right [Music] so he said it takes about three hours the two individuals are just so drained by the end of it and then the priests actually take ash and dirt and then they go away into isolation you go into a head you wait for the village for three months the elders yes or whatever it is and to the people of maui who come out to support independent art and things that are like the wild banana which is outside the box that show that everything is part of something and what’s part of here is an independent spirit that you
guys exemplify thank you for letting us be here with you on this very magnificent day the opening of the wild banana gallery thank you thank you for coming [Music] you just live um so so so so so you
