HOW DO WE PROTECT OUR SACRED SPACES? TOGETHER WE STAND.

Kūkulu;- The Pillars of Mauna ā Wākea is a traveling exhibition featuring: Art, Music and Messages of the Mauna Kea Movement. Mauna Kea Education and Awareness (MKEA) and the Kūkulu Exhibition serves as a platform to teach, to share and to inspire the community to stand as pillars for this sacred mountain through visual arts, workshops, presentations, events, and gatherings.

MKEA was created in April, 2015 by concerned and committed community members in Waimea, predominantly Native Hawaiian and all women who recognized the immediate and urgent need for all communities to have a deeper knowledge of Mauna a Wākea, also known as Mauna Kea. The organization began in response to the proposed building of an eighteen story Thirty Meter Telescope on the upper slopes of a mountain the native Hawaiians view as sacred, as the water source for the island and landscape utilized by practitioners to maintain and sustain the life ways of their ancestors.

MKEA has committed to a community vision of creating an unique, interactive, traveling art exhibit Kūkulu; to be a pillar to set the tone and the vibration that is encompassed in the Hawaiian values, and the ʻIke Kupuna or ancestral teachings, that will inspire while educate. Programs offered feature talk story sessions and presentations with cultural practitioners, kiaʻi or water protectors, educators and community members sharing experiences with Native Hawaiians, local communities, residents and visitors alike.

Exhibition opens June 16, 2025 at 6:30pm with special guest Hāwane Rios!

While there will be no film screening, the programming will include:
✨ Meditative chanting session rooted in the people, places and spirit in honor of the Mauna Kea movement
✨ A curated walkthrough of the Kūkulu art installation
✨ Reflections on the creative and spiritual journey behind the gathering of community, and the fight for the sacred mountain of Mauna a Wākea