Hunakai Studio of Fine Arts Presents Art Show, Open House

Hunakai Studio of Fine Arts in Foxborough is the only studio south of Boston that covers a full art curriculum. Hunakai Studio is an all ages and non-profit organization. Last year, approximately 375  students were enrolled in their programs and that number is growing rapidly. A few of the art forms you will find at Hunakai Studio include watercolor, oil paintings, portraits, graffiti, ceramics, and impressionistic paintings. Week long summer workshops are offered along with after-school programs for kids. Scholarships are offered to those who qualify.

This past Sunday, June 5, Hunakai Studio of Fine Arts held their open house student show. Patch spoke with Carla Carey, Executive Director at Hunakai Studio, who offered her insight. Carey said that most of the teachers are area artists and that they hold shows all year long. A tremendous amount of work was put into the show and the endless exhibits through the hallways were so vivid. Art is lacking in public school systems and Carey believes Hunakai Studio is making up for that by establishing an environment where creativity can flourish.

Ryan Mehigan is a graffiti and acrylics instructor at Hunakai Studio. Many of Mehigan students are high school students who look to add to their portfolios. One of his students Marty Reynolds, a 16 year old sophomore in high school, was outside working on a large graffiti piece during the open house. He stated that he loved the art of graffiti because "it has no specific boundaries."

Michael Evans is a pastels teacher at Hunakai Studio  Evan's art is shown nationally and he has won awards for the past three years from the Pastel Painter Society of Cape Cod. He teaches teens and adults. Evans expressed his love of working at Hunakai Studio because of the supportive environment.

Touring the art show, I could feel how relaxed the atmosphere was and just how close knit the whole studio community is. Art is an emotional expression and the show captured the essence of that. 

Show participants, Lynne Atwood and Gale Diaz, are two older students who have been involved in Hunakai Studio for years. They both expressed that painting is like therapy for them - an escape from the hectic aspects of life. Diaz said that her favorite style is oil painting because of how much you can do with it. Atwood loves restorations of old photos. She takes old black and white photos and reproduces them in color.

Mary Shea and Amanda Matthews, ceramic teachers at Hunakai Studio, expressed that pottery was their favorite art-form because clay can be worked into concrete. Pottery allows an artist to work with a real object which, according to Shea and Matthews, can be relaxing and a “vehicle for expression."

Sunday, June 5, was unseasonably warm. The Foxborough High School Jazz Band performed for attendees. The Jazz band was thrilled for the opportunity to play at the event.

The Student Open House Show was a wonderful experience for all who attended. Each teacher expressed their love  of working in the Hunakai Studio environment and are proud of the art that their students have produced. Carla and Phillip Carey put in a lot of effort for the open house and it showed.

Hunakai Studio will put on another show mid-summer that will show off the work of artists from around the area. Also, Hunakai Studio is running in the Harvard Pilgrim 10k at Gillette Stadium to raise money for their program.