Let’s Go Hawaiian! Exhibition

January 31, 2004- June 20, 2004

Hawaiian shirts (also known as Aloha shirts), have become the recognized symbol of this tropical paradise. The bold, colorful patterns illustrate the lifestyle, culture, flowers, foliage and heritage of the Hawaiian Islands.

The American Textile History Museum presents a special exhibition, Let’s Go Hawaiian from January to June, 2004. It is a fanciful look at our fascination with Hawaii, its influence on mainstream culture, and a lighthearted exploration of the cult of the Hawaiian shirt.

The exhibit tells the story of our enchantment with Waikiki through the exhibition of over 150 shirts from the 1930s through the 60s. The exhibit invites you to step off a cruise ship into a make-believe vacation in paradise. The illusion is supported by tourist memorabilia, maps, tropical scenery, and other artifacts representative of our notions of what Hawaii was and is. From early surfers, cruise ships and the burgeoning tourist trade to Elvis, the Beach Boys and Parrot Heads, the sounds, colors, styles and ethos of ‘Blue Hawaii’ will be resident at ATHM during the run of the special exhibition.

Shirt #60

Shirt #60
Long sleeves, spread collar
Rayon, coconut buttons
Green ground with yellow, orange, gray, and black
Design: Whole and sliced pineapples
Label: & #8220;MADE IN HAWAII FOR / The Liberty House / HONOLULU”
The Liberty House was one of the oldest and most respected department stores in Hawaii, and they sold shirts produced by local island manufacturers.

Shirt #66

Shirt #66
Short sleeves, spread collar
Rayon, wood buttons
Yellow ground with white, blue, reddish brown
Design: Vignettes of people, including hula dancers, ukulele players, surfers, King Kamehameha state; Hawaiian motifs, including flowers, leis, pineapples, palm trees; words, including & #8220;OAHU, OLOKAI, HAWAII, WAIKIKI, KAMEHAMEHA, HONOLULU,
STATE OF HAWAII”
Label: & #8220;Kuu-Ipo / MADE IN HAWAII”

Shirt #126

Shirt #126
Short sleeves, spread collar
Rayon, coconut buttons
Brown ground with yellow, blue, green, white, and gray
Design: floral background with decorated ukuleles showing divers
Label: & #8220;MADE IN CALIFORNIA / Westwood Casuals / KLEIN-NORTON CO.”

Shirt #197

Shirt #197
Short sleeves, spread collar
Rayon, wood buttons
Blue ground with orange, yellow, teal, green,
brown, black
Design: Vignettes of people, including woman with basket of fruit, woman with leis, hula dancers
Label: & #8220;Kuu-Ipo / MADE IN HAWAII”
Designed by Frank Macintosh for Matson Navigation Company, which operated cruise ships to Hawaii as early as the 1920s and 1930s. Macintosh created designs, including this one, that were originally used for menu covers on Matson ships and later adapted
for shirts.

Shirt #198

Shirt #198
Short sleeves, spread collar
Rayon, wood buttons
Brown ground with gray, white, yellow, orange
Design: Border print of fighting dragons and tigers
Label: & #8220;Malihini / MADE IN / HAWAII”

Shirt #213

Shirt #213
Short sleeves, spread collar
Rayon, plastic buttons
Black ground with yellow, green, red
Design: Leis
No label
Designed by John "Keoni" Meigs, one of the foremost Hawaiian shirt designers. Meigs created his own designs, as he did for this shirt, but he also adapted artwork created for other media, including Eugene Savage’s menu designs.

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