September Artist in Residence to Perform Live in Kahuku

Allison Leialoha Milham is the September Artist in Residence at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Courtesy photo.

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park and The National Parks Arts Foundation have announced Allison Leialoha Milham, a songwriter and book artist, as the September Artist in Residence. Milham is of Hawaiian descent and is originally from California, but has family ties to the islands.

“My goal will be to complete three to four new songs, which will eventually be released as a seven inch record with accompanying hand printed and bound artwork,” Milham said of her residency. “Though my focus will be on the songwriting, I think I’ll also be inspired to do some sketching and mockups of the design while immersed in the beauty of the park and my experience being there.”

Milham is a gifted professional musician who also has an advanced degree in book arts from The University of Alabama. She has combined these two areas in an unusual project combining research, printing, bookbinding and recordings of the compositions of Hawai‘i’s beloved Queen Lili‘uokalani. Her record and letterpress printed project “Uluhaimalama – Legacies of Lili‘uokalani,” is a careful selection of some of the 200 compositions that Lili‘uokalani and others composed while under house arrest.

Milham will perform live on Friday, Sept. 21, at 10 a.m. at the Kahuku Unit of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. She will play some of her own music as well as the Queen’s, accompanied by the Ukulele and her keyboard. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (808) 985-6000.

Milham’s own work is held in multiple public collections including Yale University Arts Library and The Library of Congress and is represented by Vamp & Tramp Booksellers and Brooklyn in New York City.