Tahitian Glow

This started out as a quick sketch to test some new pencils and bord. It quickly evolved into what you see here. This is done with Faber Castell Polychromo pencils on a 5 x 7 Ampersand watercolor bord. I like how this turned out so I might be testing these pencils on more projects.

Tahitian Dawn

This painting is still untitled, but it represents three Tahitian dancers on a south seas island during the break of dawn. The three dancers are Kanani, Leilani and Candace from the Tahitian Dance group Otea Api based in Freemont, CA. The size of this painting is 18 x 24. It is created with prismacolor pencils on olive colored La Carte sanded paper.

Tane Aparima

This is a study done on 8 x 10 gray pastel board and prismacolor pencils. This is a warm up piece to get me ready to start a few new paintings.

Heiti Vaihi

These three dancers are from the group Makamae Melia O' Polynesia. I attended their Annual Luau where I shot the reference photos for this painting. The dance is an Aparima, titled "Heiti Vaihi" which means "Little Hawaiian Lei". The aparima is a slow Tahitian dance which in many ways is similar to the hula. This painting is 23 x 12 done with Prismacolor pencils on orange tinted La Carte paper.

Ra'atira

Ra'atira translates to "Dance Chief" in the Tahitian language. This painting is done with Prismacolor colored pencils on olive tinted La Carte sanded paper. The size of the original is 18 x 24.5"

Stefan is the Ra'atira for the award winning Tahitian Dance Group Otea Api from Freemont, CA. I shot the reference photos for this painting while we were in Kauai practicing for the annual Kauai Tahiti Fete. We won first place awards in several categories.

Tahitian Tamari'i

This young Tahitian tamari'i (child) is named Trevor. He stands proudly and undaunted in front of two hawaiian ki'i (tikis) in a union of the two closely related cultures. This painting is done with Prismacolor pencils on white Stonehenge paper. The size is 11 x 14.5"

Ori Tahiti

This is a sketch of a solo dancer which showcases the the motion of the shaking hips which is a trademark of Tahitian dancing. This drawing is 8 x 10" done with graphite on paper.

Ori Tahiti

This is a classic pose from a Tahitian Ori (solo dance). The size is 8 x 10" prismacolor pencil on paper.