Charlene Hughes

Charlene Hughes began quilting in the1980's, when only one person on the entire island Maui taught the subject.This teacher's efforts were directed only to tourists interested in learning
Hawaiian quilting. Two sorely outdated books on the topic were available in the Maui public libraries. In addition to learning the topic, in 1996 Hughes remedied the lack of resources by founding the Maui Quilt Guild. Forty members attended the first meeting. Today the membership numbers 160.

Hughes has actively taught for the Maui Quilt Guild, the Hawaii Quilt Guild, the Hawaii Quilt Research Group and Quilt Hawaii. And in the tradition of many quilters who used their medium as message, Hughes has donated quilts to survivors of Hurricane Katrina, domestic and animal abuse shelters, hospitalized veterans of wars, residents of retirement home, the AIDS Foundation and breast cancer research.

During her life as a quilter, Hughes has been honored by the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts purchase of three art quilts; other of her quilts have been purchased for collections on the mainland and in Hawaii. She has been an invited artist in a broad array of local and national shows, as well as a juried contributor to the state's most prestigious Artists of Hawaii exhibition at the Honolulu Academy of Art. The latest events have included interviews and photos for the "Alliance of American Quilts" and being invited to show two pieces at the "Quilts for Obama Inaugural Exhibit" in Washington D.C. Other of Hughes' quilts have been featured in books, magazines and college catalogs.

Suzanne Marinelli

Arleen Woo

Jennifer Cook

Hans Loffel

Phil Uhl

Candace Fenander

Kathy Bowers

By day, Kathy Bowers is a middle school vice principal, but when she leaves the Honolulu campus and makes her way across the H-3 to her home on the Windward side, her eye for art is on high alert. She began doodling as a child, but really made use of the art form when she went to graduate school. She would doodle as she listened to lectures and class discussions. Often classmates would tell her she should sell her doodles. She decided to give it a try during the fall of 2006 by taking part in a small craft fair. She was delighted that her designs were so well received, and her small business was born.

Kathy uses a number of mediums, but her favorite is gel pens on sketch paper. The designs are born as the pen touches the paper and they tell Kathy when they are ready for her to sign. Sometimes she has a particular form in mind—say an apple or a palm tree—but more often, the design just grows.

Granddaughter Isabella is responsible for the name for Kathy's artwork business: Nana's Noodles. She was three years old when she first noticed Nana working on her art. She asked what she was doing, and Nana replied, "Doodling." The next time Isabella saw Nana working, she asked, "Is that one of your noodles?"

katylouse48@hotmail.com