Maui Public Art Corps announces 2026 call for artists and design teams

Maui Public Art Corps, in partnership with the County of Maui and cultural consultant Sissy Lake-Farm, has officially announced two major request for qualifications for 2026: the annual Hui Mo‘olelo Artist Commission Call and a new $1.5 million initiative, “Echoes of the Land: A Call for Narrative Playscapes.”

Both opportunities are grounded in the Hui Mo‘olelo program, which captures intergenerational “talk story” recordings to serve as the conceptual heart of public works. Applications for both calls are now open on the CaFÉ (CallForEntry.org) platform and close at 11:59 p.m. HST on April 7, 2026. Visit mauipublicart.org/apply for details and direct links to apply. 

The “Echoes of the Land” project seeks qualified multidisciplinary design teams (that may include landscape architects, artists, and structural engineers) to create three permanent, story-grounded playscape installations in public parks across Maui County. With a total capital budget of $1.5 million ($500,000 per site), the initiative utilizes a “Design and Venue Matching” model to pair finalists with park locations based on their technical expertise and narrative alignment.

In a gesture of resilience, teams are invited to integrate salvaged timber and stumps recovered from the 2023 wildfires in Lahaina and Kula, giving these remnants a second life as foundational elements of play. These playscapes are designed for “intergenerational” use, allowing keiki, adults, and elders to occupy the space simultaneously through physical play, rest, and storytelling.

Simultaneously, MPAC is seeking individual artists and collaborative groups for its annual commission cycle, focusing on site-specific works that celebrate Maui County stories. The 2026 categories include:

• Pāʻia Youth & Cultural Center Renovation (C2–C5): Permanent installations including a 36-foot exterior elevator shaft relief, decorative metal railing panels, and landscape-scale environmental works.
• Pop-Up Performances (C1): Original 20–30 minute sets of music, dance, or theater inspired by the story archive.
• Lahaina Mosaic Project (C6): A direct-submission opportunity for digital artists to have their work transformed into durable mosaic tile panels.
• Open Call (C7): Proposals for story animations, sculpture, lightwork and more.

Unlike traditional grants, these opportunities are commissions for services. Selected finalists enter a collaborative development phase where initial proposals evolve through community dialogue. Each project is culturally grounded through the identification of a specific proverb from Mary Kawena Pukui’s “ʻŌlelo No‘eau: Hawaiian Proverbs and Poetical Sayings.”

“This RFQ invites architecture and design firms to participate in a model where the community is a co-author of the work,” says Kelly McHugh-White, Chair of Maui Public Art Corps. Cultural consultant Sissy Lake-Farm adds, “By rooting these works in these specific narratives, we ensure that the knowledge and lived experiences of our ancestors and elders are actively passed down to the next generation”.

Interested applicants must submit their qualifications, portfolios, and conceptual approaches via CallForEntry.org. Comprehensive project specifications, technical requirements, and the Hui Mo‘olelo story menu are available at mauipublicart.org/apply.

Maui Public Art Corps is a public-private partnership that connects artists and communities to preserve and amplify the stories of Maui County through site-specific public art. Since 2018, the program has completed over 130 projects in partnership with the County of Maui.