Welcome to Downtown Art Center!

Current Main Gallery Exhibition

Hawaii Watercolor Society 2024 Members’ Show
On View April 3-27, 2024

Exhibition Events:

• Opening Reception and Awards Ceremony: First Friday, May 3 from 5:30 - 8 p.m. (Free and open to the public) Juror walkthrough at 5 p.m.; award ceremony at 6 p.m.

• Closing Reception: Saturday, June 1 from 5-6 p.m.

Since 1982, Hawaii Craftsmen has sponsored the biennial Fiber Hawaii juried exhibition. This year's exhibition, juried by Cameron Taylor-Brown, a curator, founder of ARTSgarage in Los Angeles, and teacher who travels to schools, guilds, museums and conferences throughout the United States and Canada, challenges artists to create works "In, Of or About Fiber."

Artists who work in any craft media are invited to consider making artwork with a fiber sensibility. Fiber and textile techniques may be thought of as an idea as well as a media. Past exhibits have included woven glass, clay, wood and metal as well as works in more traditional fiber media such as weavings, handmade paper, basketry, stitchery, quilts, batiks, textile design, kapa, and mixed media. Works may be functional or non-functional. For more information, visit hawaiicraftsmen.org/Fiber-Hawaii-2024.

Current Courtyard Gallery Exhibition

Hitoshi Hida: Retrospective
On View May 3 - June 1, 2024

Exhibition Events:

• Opening Reception: First Friday, May 3 from 5:30 - 8 p.m. (Free and open to the public)

DAC is honored to present a retrospective (and birthday exhibition) of the sketches and paintings of distinguished architectural illustrator and G70 principal Hitoshi Hida, who is renowned for his meticulous hand-drawn renderings. His professional career, spanning four decades, has included projects in China, Vietnam, Japan, and Tahiti.

“Retrospective” will include a diverse collection of Hida’s work, including some of his earlier paintings, architectural renderings, sculpture pieces made with short leftover pencil ends and drawings on paper tubes, and more recent pastel works. 

About Hitoshi Hida: 

Hitoshi Hida AIA, a retired architect and accomplished artist, discovered his passion for drawing and painting in his childhood. His artistic journey began with winning the prestigious Hallmark Award (Best in Show) for a watercolor painting he did in high school (the painting will be on display in this exhibition). While working as an architect designing buildings in Chicago and Hawaiʻi, he always maintained his passion for art, producing detailed renderings to help the clients visualize a project at its earliest stages. Hida’s career culminated at Honolulu's G70 Design, where he served as one of the principals until his retirement. 

Now mainly working in the medium of  pastel painting, Hida draws inspiration from his Japanese heritage and the tranquility of Hawaiʻi, capturing scenes and subjects that convey serenity to himself and his viewers. Influenced by the realism of Andrew Wyeth, his strongest influence, Hida’s paintings evoke a sense of calmness and beauty, inviting viewers to immerse themselves in serene landscapes and urban scenes. 

Current Classroom Exhibition

Making Art for Art’s Sake
On View March 1-June 30 (extended), 2024

First Friday Opening Reception: Friday, March 1 from 5:30 - 8 p.m.

This student and teacher show in the DAC Classroom features art and craft projects created during our popular Saturday afternoon workshops, Making Art for Art’s Sake, every Saturday from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Instructed by diverse teaching artists, each class introduces exciting projects to spark your imagination and hone new art-making skills in different mediums, like printmaking, watercolor painting, bookmaking, pyrography, and more. Unleash your inner artist in a welcoming environment, where the emphasis is on playfulness, open-mindedness, and pure fun. Whether you're taking your first steps into creativity or looking to explore new artistic avenues, these classes are designed for everyone. Join us weekly to discover a variety of projects that inspire and encourage self-expression. Sign up for a session at downtownarthi.org/classes today!

Upcoming Events & Exhibitions

Calls to Artists

Go Figure: Figures & Portraits from Hawaii’s Artists
With Juror Noreen Naughton

For this juried exhibition, we invite artists of any caliber and experience level in the state of Hawaii who have created life or figure drawing artwork to enter!

Call For Entries Period: March 30 - May 17, 2024

Accepted Artists Announced and Notified by Email: June 7

Registration Fee: $20 flat fee per artist for up to 4 works submitted. IF accepted into the exhibition, hanging fee is an additional $50, regardless of number of pieces accepted. Payment must be made before or during load-in.

Eligibility: Artists of ANY experience level in Hawaii.

Works Eligible for Submission: Figure drawings, paintings, pastels and all forms of 2d and 3d life drawing artwork in any medium will be accepted for this show. Each artist may submit up to 4 framed works, unlimited number of unframed works to be sold in in artist’s own rack.

Find out more HERE.