Artists of Hawaiʻi Biennial 2026
The Artists of Hawaiʻi exhibition is Hawaiʻi’s longest-running, all-media juried exhibition of contemporary art by Hawaiʻi-based artists, established in 1951 to recognize and document the evolving visual arts of the islands. Originally hosted by the Honolulu Academy of Arts (now the Honolulu Museum of Art), it became one of the most significant platforms for local artists, helping to define and elevate Hawaiʻi’s modern and contemporary art scene.
Downtown Art Center is proud to present the Artists of Hawai'i Biennial 2026. This exhibition, held in DAC’s Main Gallery from November 6 through December 19, 2026, is dedicated to showcasing the best of Hawai'i’s contemporary art. Works will be juried by Trisha Lagaso Goldberg, Director of Programming & Engagement for Anderson Collection at Stanford University and former public art project manager for the Hawai’i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts.
Artists of all ages and experience levels, working in any medium, who reside in the state of Hawai'i are encouraged to apply. Submission guidelines, deadlines, and more are provided below.
With Juror Trisha Lagaso Goldberg
Director of Programming & Engagement for Anderson Collection at Stanford University and former public art project manager for the Hawai’i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts
Trisha Lagaso Goldberg is an educator, public art consultant, and independent curator based between the San Francisco Bay Area and O'ahu, Hawai'i. Her curatorial practice centers on amplifying artists historically excluded from dominant narratives, including Indigenous peoples, people of color, and queer and trans communities, with a deep expertise in Asian and Pacific Islander diasporas.
A leader in both public and institutional art spaces, she was a dedicated member of the commissioned works branch of the Hawai'i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (2006–2018), was the founding gallery director at thirtyninehotel in Honolulu’s Chinatown, is a member of Ninth Planet, a transdisciplinary contemporary art collective that recently organized the Lagrange Point exhibition for /(Slash) in San Francisco, and has produced major exhibitions including the touring retrospective Carlos Villa: Worlds in Collision (2022) at the Newark Museum of Art and Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. She currently serves as Director of Programming & Engagement at the Anderson Collection at Stanford University.
Lagaso Goldberg is currently developing two significant projects: the traveling exhibition Remittance (2026), commissioned by Independent Curators International, and Noguchi + Hawai'i (2027) for the Honolulu Museum of Art. She is also dedicated to mentorship, co-teaching museum studies at Stanford and lecturing at institutions including RISD and San Francisco State University.
PROSPECTUS
This prospectus contains more details about works eligible for entry into Artists of Hawai'ʻi Biennial 2026, and important dates to know. The contents of this Prospectus may change, so please ensure that you have downloaded the most current version below.
Past Artists of Hawaii Exhibitions at DAC
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Artists of Hawaiʻi Biennial 2024
Juried by Tom Klobe
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Artists of Hawaiʻi 2023
Juried by Tyler Cann