Mele Murals

Mele Murals is a project of the Estria Foundation that provides youth development, arts education, cultural preservation, and community building in Hawaii.

Mele Murals is a youth development, arts education, cultural preservation, and community-building project. Over a five-year period, starting in late 2013, local artists, youth, and other members of communities spanning the eight major islands of Hawai`i will create a series of large-scale outdoor murals focusing on Hawaiian lyrics (mele) that explore mo`olelo `aina (stories of place) and cultural

and historical heritage. Goals of Mele Murals:
Our work honors the last commands of our King David Kalakaua, “Look to the keiki, teach them, groom them, show them wonder, and inspire them.” Mele Murals affords a platform to teach young people to become storytellers, painters, and community leaders. The program’s goals are to:
• Create an all-islands public art project that is artistically excellent, deeply connected to the history of Hawai‘i, and a source of pride.

• Build and sustain an Art in Public movement across the island chain.

• Beautify the islands with professional works of art.

• Develop arts-interested youth into visual storytellers by educating them on local history, showing them how to connect to ancestors, and developing their artistic skills.

• Provide opportunities for youth to explore Hawaiian oral storytelling tradition, to learn how to read kaona, and to preserve Hawaiian values

• Educate about Hawaii’s cultural heritage.

• Teach public art techniques that are not taught in conventional arts classes.

• Increase cross-generation and cross-island engagement by creating new and exciting opportunities for all generations to learn and share mele and stories.

• Develop leadership, organizing, and public speaking skills.

• Enhance student creative and critical thinking skills through the mural arts process and support for arts educators and teaching artists.

• Increase social connection among youth artists by developing and supporting a network of youth mural clubs across the islands and connecting these clubs to area cultural workers.

• Use a broad set of media tools to share the stories of the mele with a broad, global audience, highlighting important artistic, cultural, and historical themes.

06/03/2026

Less than a week out from our Mele Murals Summer Program 2026!🎨🖌🎨🖌

05/25/2026

Too young to paint murals, but old enough to enjoy a nice picnic with our Mele Murals micro fiber towels. You can also grab yourself one at our online store! 🎨🖌🎨🖌

05/14/2026

It is never too late to paint your first mural! Beautiful piece we had the pleasure to paint together at The Lutheran Church of Honolulu! 🖌🎨🖌🎨

05/10/2026

We go home and do the same! Happy Mother's Day to all the cool moms whose keiki are out there painting murals around the islands! 🎨🖌🎨🖌

04/21/2026

With so many project going on, we encourage our community members to lend a helping hand at our events. Volunteers selflessly contribute their time, talents as artists, organizational skills, and equipment. If you are in search of fun, engaging, and unique volunteer opportunities please feel free to reach out! 🖌🎨🖌🎨

04/14/2026

And guess what? We're coming back! Mele Murals Summer Program registrations are now open and spots are filling up quickly! 🖌🎨🖌🎨

03/30/2026

Mele Murals Spring Program 2026 at Mountain View Elementary was a blast (as always)! 🎨🖌🎨🖌

03/28/2026

Mele Murals Spring Program 2026 just came to an end, and here are some of our favorite memories from Kāneʻohe Elementary School!🎨🖌🎨🖌

03/26/2026

"The Hawaiian race is passing. And if conditions continue to exist as they do today, this splendid race of people, my people, will pass from the face of the earth… The legislation proposed seeks to place the Hawaiian back on the soil, so that the valuable and sturdy traits of that race, peculiarly adapted to the islands shall be preserved to posterity". - Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole

03/16/2026

Pro tip: Stock up on your Mele Murals shirts, they will get dirty! Link to your shop is in the bio! 🎨🖌🎨🖌

Address

P. O. BOX 11562
Honolulu, HI
96828

Website

http://estria.org/

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