Full Life Hawai’i, Abled Hawai’i Artists (AHA) and Donkey Mill Art Center, are excited to announce the 5th Annual Pua Na Pua Art Festival, but this year with a twist!  With the mission to serve adults with developmental disabilities (DD) by providing visual and performing arts programming, the Pua Na Pua Festival celebrates the fifth anniversary of this partnership with expanded in-person, physically distanced art experiences, an online silent auction and artists with developmental disabilities selling their work at Ali‘i Gardens Marketplace. 

The Pua Na Pua Festival kicks off with the opening of the Online Silent Auction on May 22. Loaded with gift certificates and merchandise from some of your favorite Hawai’i Island restaurants, shops and businesses, auction proceeds support the ongoing arts programming which Pua Na Pua offers to adults with developmental disabilities. The silent auction closes on June 5 at 1:00pm HST.

Get your art on! The Festival continues with in-person art experiences at the Donkey Mill Art Center on May 27, 28, 29 and June 3 and 4, where participants (ages 6+) can work with our skilled teaching artists alongside Full Life and AHA artists. This year’s activities include opportunities to explore metals, clay, printmaking, origami, puppet making and more! You’ll want to register early at donkeymillartcenter.org as space is limited.

The Festival culminates at Aliʻi Gardens Marketplace on Saturday, June 5 with an art fair featuring work by Full Life and AHA artists and the close of the silent auction at 1:00pm HST.

This partnership program between three Hawai’i Island-based non-profits, serves adults with developmental disabilities by providing visual and performing arts programming to foster artistic development, nurture confidence through gallery exhibitions and presentations and explore independence through self-employment. Each year, the Pua Na Pua program hosts weekly programs at the Donkey Mill Art Center for Full Life and AHA students to explore a variety of mediums including metals, printmaking, ceramics, and painting taught by local area teaching artists.

Pua Na Pua translates to “A Flower is a Flower,” a name celebrating the equality of art produced by artists of all abilities. This celebration is the first of its kind in West Hawai‘i, and inclusively celebrates the contributions of both developmentally disabled and non-developmentally disabled artists, with opportunities available to artists of all abilities. 

This program was made possible by the support of the County of Hawaii, Alexander & Baldwin Kokua Giving Program and our silent auction donors.