Discipline: Folklife/Traditional Arts
Pi‘ilaniwahine Smith is a Native Hawaiian contemporary artist and kumu hula, descending from a matrilineal genealogy of kumu hula within her ‘ohana. Her mother, Alicia Keolahouakamalama Keawekane Smith of Haleʻiwa, Oʻahu, is her kumu hula and the founder of the esteemed Hālau O Nā Maolipua.
Smith’s ʻieʻie weaving is deeply informed by her practice of hula kuahu, where the ‘ie‘ie serves as a manifestation of Laka. She is recognized in her community as a hula practitioner who uses her cultural knowledge and experience as a form of political resistance and activism, advocating for the protection of ʻāina and Native Hawaiian rights. Through her use of ‘ie‘ie, Smith reclaims the connection between people and place, reigniting conversations of the sacred with the sacred through Ma ka ʻike ka hana, a traditional Native Hawaiian worldview where continuity of knowledge informs future generations.
In 2024, Smith celebrated her artist debut with her solo exhibition, ʻIe holo ē, at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Hamilton Library, Hawaiʻi and Pacific Collections. The exhibition featured a nine-piece collection, culminating in a rare kiʻi akua hulu manu.
Today, Smith continues her family’s hula legacy as kumu hula of Hālau Mālamalamapiʻopiʻookalāpukakakahiaka.