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Artworks
Robert Lee Eskridge American, 1891-1975
Hukilau, 1940 (ca.)Oil on canvas40 x 55 "Signed lower rightPrivate collectionHawaiian subjects dominated the paintings, prints, and watercolors of Hawaii well into the 20th century, whether for public commissions or as expressions of personal interest. Robert Lee Eskridge approached a...Hawaiian subjects dominated the paintings, prints, and watercolors of Hawaii well into the 20th century, whether for public commissions or as expressions of personal interest. Robert Lee Eskridge approached a variety of Hawaiian themes, including the popular hukilau, a community fish harvest.
An almost arbitrary use of bright color and swinging compositional rhythms result in this decorative, cheerful record of a traditional Hawaiian activity. Images such as this came to represent the pleasurable simplicities of Island life as perceived by patrons of Eskridge and his peers.
Catalogues
Severson, Don R, Michael D Horikawa, and Jennifer Saville. Finding Paradise: Island Art in Private Collections, Honolulu Academy of Arts. Honolulu: Honolulu Academy Of Arts, University Of Hawaii Press, 2002.