Uploaded October 2024 | Updated September 2026, 12 hours ago
Navigating Lolelaplap, an exhibition that honors the Marshallese community by infusing a reverence for tradition with an eagerness to celebrate Marshallese Indigenous culture here and now. Opening Saturday, October 19, the focus show features objects and stories shared from community members and works created by local artists and makers.
In the Marshallese language, “Lolelaplap” is the name for the Marshall Islands. Located in the Pacific Ocean about halfway between Hawaii and the Philippines, the island nation consists of five islands and 29 atolls (ring-shaped coral islands that encircle a lagoon). While separated by more than 6,000 miles, Lolelaplap and Northwest Arkansas share a close connection: Northwest Arkansas is the home to the largest concentration of Marshall Islanders in the United States. Navigating Lolelaplap explores that intergenerational connection rooted right here in the region.
Developed through a multi-year partnership between ACOM and Crystal Bridges, the show features works including Canoe of One Community, a traditional kōrkōr canoe built by master boat-builder Liton Beasa in 2021 on the Crystal Bridges grounds. The exhibition also includes Manit Day Weaving (2023), a woven mat made of pandanus leaves and spray-painted by local artist Helamr Anitok; and two dresses, one of which was made by Tie Lawin and Fressana Lawin that features a stick chart design and was worn at last year’s Stroll the Atolls event in Springdale.
Navigating Lolelaplap, an exhibition that honors the Marshallese community by infusing a reverence for tradition with an eagerness to celebrate Marshallese Indigenous culture here and now. Opening Saturday, October 19, the focus show features objects and stories shared from community members and works created by local artists and makers.
In the Marshallese language, “Lolelaplap” is the name for the Marshall Islands. Located in the Pacific Ocean about halfway between Hawaii and the Philippines, the island nation consists of five islands and 29 atolls (ring-shaped coral islands that encircle a lagoon). While separated by more than 6,000 miles, Lolelaplap and Northwest Arkansas share a close connection: Northwest Arkansas is the home to the largest concentration of Marshall Islanders in the United States. Navigating Lolelaplap explores that intergenerational connection rooted right here in the region.
Developed through a multi-year partnership between ACOM and Crystal Bridges, the show features works including Canoe of One Community, a traditional kōrkōr canoe built by master boat-builder Liton Beasa in 2021 on the Crystal Bridges grounds. The exhibition also includes Manit Day Weaving (2023), a woven mat made of pandanus leaves and spray-painted by local artist Helamr Anitok; and two dresses, one of which was made by Tie Lawin and Fressana Lawin that features a stick chart design and was worn at last year’s Stroll the Atolls event in Springdale.
