Herb Kawainui Kane - Early Life and Education As An Artist

Early Life and Education As An Artist

Kāne (kɑh-nay) was born in the community of Paynesville, Minnesota in the United States. His father, who was also named, Herbert, worked in family poi business, and became a paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy), then traveled the US in a Hawaiian Band. He later served in the Army and Navy, and had his own practice as a doctor of Optometry. Herbert Jr.'s grandfather immigrated to Waipio Valley from China and being very industrious he built the first poi factory in the islands, growing taro and producing poi for market. His mother’s family were farmers of Danish ancestry in Wisconsin. Kāne’s childhood was divided between Wisconsin and Hawaiʻi. He describes in his book, Voyagers, an early awakening to art. In 1935 he was a barefoot child in Hilo, Hawaii, brought by his mother to the opening of a gallery exhibition of the work of D. Howard Hitchcock. He writes that he was “stunned, confronted with miracles” seeing Hitchcock’s work and speaking with him briefly. Hitchcock was the first Hawaiian-born artist to achieve international recognition, and his work focused on unique Hawaiian subject matter, particularly the volcanic eruptions near Hilo. According to his own account, besides this exposure to art and the ongoing encouragement of his parents to pursue his interest in drawing, Kāne’s most formative experiences in childhood were in Hawaiʻi, where his father and his family passed along the traditional folk tales of the islands.

Kāne served in the United States Navy, qualifying for veteran’s educational benefits under the G.I. Bill. After he was discharged, he used those benefits to attend the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, in Chicago, Illinois, earning a Bachelor’s degree and, in 1953, a Master’s degree. Under an arrangement between the two schools at the time, his Master’s degree was awarded by the University of Chicago.