Fashioning Aloha

Aloha wear is more than flowers. Spanning almost 90 years, Fashioning Aloha showcases the diversity and inspiration of design motifs in aloha wear—holokū (gowns), mu‘umu‘u, holomū (dresses), and aloha shirts. 

Starting with the birth of aloha wear in the 1930s, when printed fabric depicting Hawaiian motifs developed, and continuing to the present with contemporary brands, this exhibition explores how aloha wear and its local and global design references can signal identity, culture and connection to place. 

Fashioning Aloha traces the evolution of aloha wear through a stylish feast for the eyes. Garments are paired with their textile motifs’ source materials from the museum’s collection, such as traditional Hawaiian kapa (bark cloth), Japanese kimono, a Chinese dragon robe and cheongsam, and Hawaiian quilts. 

Featured in the exhibition are loans along with recent acquisitions from the collection of Linda Arthur Bradley, Ph.D., former professor of apparel, merchandising, design and textiles at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and Washington State University. 

Exhibition Programming

Support for Fashioning Aloha is provided by 

NMG Network 

Additional support provided by 

Tori Richard
JCB
Jhamandas Watumull Fund
Laura Goo
Aqua-Aston Hospitality