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Spirit of the Dance
I will always remember the first time I saw the hula, I mean the "real" Hula, the Hula that conveys the spirit of the dance. I was attending a Made in Hawai'i Festival in August 2000 with my cousins Mike and Jeannette. We took a break to listen to a concert on stage. It felt good to sit and stop shopping.
The band invited a woman on stage to dance while they played music. Probably a friend or family member, the woman, who must have been eight months pregnant, got up on stage and started to dance.
Everything else stopped for me and I was transfixed by her graceful movements. To this day I tear up at the memory. Her love of the music and the dance was palpable and I began to understand the cultural importance of music and Hula.
Dancing Hula requires years of focus and practice, it is not an easy skill to learn. Making it look beautiful and graceful, while telling a story, especially with a very pregnant body is not easy!
In the months before moving to O'ahu, I took a few Hula lessons. OMG! Those lessons were NOT fun, they were HARD WORK. As a result, I never learned the Hula. But I have long retained a love of, and appreciation for, Hula.
I am honored to tell you that my painting, "Spirit of the Dance"
has been chosen to represent the Hale'iwa Arts Festival this year!
I first heard about the Hale'iwa Arts Festival in June 2000. I was new to the island and had just started to take watercolor lessons. I didn't even know what kind of art I would create, but I knew I wanted to be a part of the event - so I volunteered.
That first year, I manned one of the "water stations" where thirsty shoppers could purchase bottled water or soda. I was stationed directly across from one of my new favorite island artists, Margo Goodwill.
I was too shy to get to know Margo that first year, but she and I have since become good friends ... although I admit it's been far too many years since we have spent the day painting together.
The Hale'wa Arts Festival is in its 13th year as the premiere arts festival on O'ahu. The festival features 125 juried artists, plus musicians, singers, dancers, trolley tours, storytellers, student art, art demonstrations, and childrens activities.
And it's FREE!
It runs Saturday, July 17, 10am-6pm & Sunday, July 18, 10am-5pm.
If you are on the island, please come to the event and stop in to see me. I will be in tent space #93, right across from the "Cool Things to Buy" Tent where you can purchase posters and t-shirts featuring Spirit of the Dance. I will be happy to autograph your purchases for you.
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June is almost over, but you still have time to take advantage of Free Shipping in June! All orders through www.artofaloha.com ship to the USA ship for free this month. Now through June 30th, you can purchase an 11"x14" matted print of Spirit of the Dance for $34 - it ships for FREE. This is your opportunity to beat the rush come July 17th! Larger sizes are available online.  
If you don't like to shop online, please send an email to me (patrice@artofaloha.com) and we will find another way for you to take part in Free Shipping in June so you can have Art of Aloha in your life too!
Mahalo for reading my eZine and for staying in touch. Thank you for clicking on the forward button at the bottom of the eZine and sharing it with your friends. Please share this on facebook & twitter too (the icons below make it easy!).
A Hui Hou,
 **************************"Art
is not just ornamental, an enhancement of life, but a path in itself, a way out
of the predictable and conventional, a map of self-discovery." - Gabrielle
Roth ************************** |
 Born in Port Washington, WI and educated at the University of Wisconsin/Madison, Patrice Federspiel first visited Hawai'i in January 2000. Within five months she had found a way to quit her job, sell her home, and move to Hawai'i to paint.
Previously an oil painter, Patrice learned the joys of watercolor upon her arrival in Honolulu in June 2000. She has been painting full time ever since. It is her intention to live her "Real Life" creatively, from the inside out; and to inspire others, through her paintings, art lessons, words, and example, to do the same.
"I paint with passion, live without regrets, and move joyfully forward through life." -Patrice Federspiel
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 Patrice Federspiel
PO Box 61707
Honolulu, Hawaii 96839
(808) 392-9104
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