Meet the artist: Alika Gorospe

 ʻO kēia kaʻu kiʻi.  Makemake au e ʻōlelo e pili ana i kēia mea ma waenakonu.  ʻO ka leo o ke kīkā kēia.  Ua hoʻohana au i kēia mea no ka mea pani kēia mea i ka mele a he mea paepae ka mele.  E aʻo ana aku au i kaʻu keiki i ka mele.  Ma kahi o ka leo o ke kīkā au e kau ai i nā mahele waho o ka iwi honu.  He hōʻailona kēia mea o koʻu ʻohana.  Ua kaha ʻia ka mahele loko o ka iwi honu ma mua ʻakā naʻe ʻoi aku ka nani o ka mahele ʻē aʻe ma mua o kēia mahele.  Ma kahi o ka mahele o ka iwi honu au e kaha ai i ke kukū o ka hailepo.  Ua hoʻohana au i kēia mea no ka mea ua pani ke kukū i ka moʻolelo o koʻu ola i hoʻololi iaʻu.  Ua pani kēia mea i ka moʻolelo no ka mea na ka hailepo i ʻoki mua i koʻu wāwae.  I kēia manawa, loaʻa iaʻu ka ʻālina mai kēlā hanana.  ʻO ka mea hope, ua kaha au i nā nalu no ka pani ʻana o ke kumu waiwai o ka wai. He mea nui ke kai iaʻu no ka mea ma laila au e hele ai no koʻu wahi o ka malu a luana au i ka heʻenalu ʻana.  A ua pau.  Mahalo.

Alika shares his manaʻo:

My art piece encompasses most of the things I value in life.  At the center, I have the soundhole of the guitar (ka leo o ke kīkā).  This represents music in my life because regardless of the type of day, music will always be in the background of my activities may it be working out at the gym, doing homework independently, or simply riding in the car to lighten my mood or help me stay focused.  Surrounding the guitar’s soundhole is the rim of a turtle shell.  This is because I use turtles to represent my family and friends since the names of all my immediate family are on a decorative turtle display at my house.  Surrounding all of these is what should be stingray tails (nā kukū o ka hailepo).  In high school, I was cut by a stingray on my left foot, and it occurred during an extremely difficult time in my life.  Getting passed this difficult time taught me important values that changed my outlook on life in a very positive way.  Lastly, the waves represent my love for the ocean.  As a typical local boy growing up, I’ve grown to love the beach and know that I can always turn to it for my place of peace (ko‘u wahi o ka malu).  When I’m there, I never miss the moment to stare and give the Man Above some quality time.