Maui Arts & Cultural Center’s portrait exhibition goes on the road to Oʻahu

The Maui Arts & Cultural Center’s signature triennial portrait exhibition has made the move from Kahului to Oʻahu for a six-month run at the state’s official art museum.

The Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts and the Maui Arts & Cultural Center announced the opening of the Schaefer Portrait Challenge exhibit at Capitol Modern: the Hawaiʻi State Art Museum in downtown Honolulu. The eighth edition of the statewide juried competition previously debuted at the MACC’s Schaefer International Gallery before traveling to Honolulu.

The exhibition features 40 portraits from five islands. Jurors Sonnet Coggins, Mina Elison, and Wendy Kawabata selected the works through a competitive process. The challenge includes three cash awards for participants: the Jurors’ Choice Award, the Gene Freedman Artists’ Choice Award, and the Ruth Freedman People’s Choice Award.

In tandem with the traveling Maui exhibit, the state museum is displaying “Contemporary Portraiture: Art in Public Places.” This selection from the state’s permanent collection highlights psychological, political, and spiritual aspects of subjects through various mediums including painting, sculpture, and photography.

Both exhibitions are scheduled to run through July 4, 2026. An opening reception for the Schaefer Portrait Challenge will be held from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday.

Upcoming 2026 Exhibits

The State Foundation on Culture and the Arts also released a preliminary schedule for other exhibitions at the downtown Honolulu museum for the coming year:

• Trifecta: A collaboration with local artists featuring works from the Art in Public Places Collection, opening Feb. 6, 2026.
• 2026 Hawaiʻi Regional Scholastic Student Art Awards: An annual competition for students in grades 8-12, running from Feb. 14 through March 14, 2026.
• 2026 Art in Public Places New Accessions: A showcase of recently acquired artworks purchased from local exhibits, scheduled to open in July 2026.

Museum Information

Museum hours changed recently. The current schedule for Capitol Modern is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. The museum is closed Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and on state government holidays.

Evening hours are available from 5 to 9 p.m. during the first and third Friday of each month for live music events. Admission to the museum is free.