The Art of Kapa: A Journey Through Hawaii’s Ancient Barkcloth Tradition

On a sunny April morning in 2023, a group of women gathered at Haleakalā National Park to beat strips of bark into cloth. They were part of a quiet resurgence of kapa, the ancient Hawaiian barkcloth tradition that was nearly lost after European contact. By the late-eighteenth century, the introduction of manufactured cloth by European explorers and American missionaries had caused kapa production to diminish rapidly. Today, a growing number of practitioners are bringing the practice back.

This article covers the process of making kapa, the key figures driving its revival, and where you can see the craft in action. It matters because kapa isn’t just a textile — it’s a window into how pre-contact Hawaiians lived, dressed, and understood the world around them.

Understanding Kapa: More Than Just Cloth

Kapa is a centuries-old Polynesian textile that early Hawaiians elevated to a high art by adding fermentation, watermarks, and bold natural pigments to the process.

Before cotton arrived in the nineteenth century, kapa was everywhere in the Hawaiian Islands. It clothed the living, covered the sleeping, buried the dead, and beautified the ceremonial dress of dancers and warriors. The cloth also carried a spiritual weight — it held the mana (life force) of the plants it was made from and the people who made and wore it.

Traditionally, kapa making was women’s work. A single piece could take months to complete. The process starts with the paper mulberry tree, known locally as wauke, which is carefully cultivated for up to two years. After harvesting, the outer bark is stripped, and the inner stem is soaked in seawater. Then comes the beating — large blocks of time must be set aside to strike the bark through various stages using tools made primarily from native wood. Native Hawaiian and Polynesian plants are commonly used to scent and boldly dye the finished cloth.

Where to See Kapa Being Made

The revival of kapa is happening in specific places, often far from the resort corridors.

Roen Hufford’s Farm on Moloka‘i

Roen Halley Kahalewai McDonald Hufford was born in 1950 on Moloka‘i and raised on O‘ahu. She studied art at the Pratt Institute in New York and the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. In 2023, she was named a National Endowment of the Arts National Heritage Fellow, the nation’s highest recognition in the folk and traditional arts. Hufford hosts a weekly kapa hui (kapa group) at her home, where students of all ages, backgrounds, and skill levels are welcome to learn kapa free of charge. She teaches the entire process, from farming and cultivating wauke to decorating with natural dyes and pigments. Two large wauke patches on her farm, one first planted by her mother, have nourished generations of kapa makers.

Haleakalā National Park Demonstrations

On a sunny day in April 2023, a group of women came together at Haleakalā National Park to demonstrate kapa making. Two of the participants, Didi Krause and Poha Kanakaʻole, are ʻōlapa (dancers) for Hālau o Nakaulakuhikuhi with kumu hula Kauʻi Kanakaʻole. They were introduced to kapa making under the instruction of contemporary kapa practitioner Verna Takashima of Oʻahu. The third participant was their young student, Kapiʻolani Piʻimauna-Beck. The demonstration focused on an important beating stage that occurs after the wauke has gone through a soaking and fermentation process. At this point, the bark is struck with the iʻe kuku implement — one side of the tool contains an intricately carved pattern used for the finishing beat to imprint a watermark on the kapa.

Living Traditions Festival in Salt Lake City

Through a collaboration with the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, and with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Hufford will be featured in the Living Traditions Festival in Salt Lake City, May 15 to 17, to demonstrate making kapa. Throughout the festival, Hufford and her students will demonstrate kapa making using, in part, Utah native plant materials. This is a rare chance to see the craft outside of Hawai‘i.

Practical Planning for Seeing Kapa

Timing and access matter more here than for most cultural activities.

Getting to Moloka‘i

Moloka‘i is the least developed of the main Hawaiian Islands. Flights from Honolulu take about 25 minutes. There are no resort hotels on the island, so accommodation is limited to a handful of small inns and vacation rentals. If you’re planning to attend Hufford’s kapa hui, contact her through the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage for current details.

Best Time to Visit

Kapa demonstrations tied to cultural festivals happen most often during spring and summer. The Living Traditions Festival in Salt Lake City runs May 15 to 17. In Hawai‘i, cultural events tied to Makahiki festivals sometimes include kapa demonstrations, though these are less frequent. If you’re on O‘ahu, check with the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa library, which holds print materials on kapa, including Kapa: Hawaiian Bark Cloth by Adrienne Lois Kaeppler and Material Approaches to Polynesian Barkcloth.

Costs and Local Friction

Hufford’s kapa hui is free, but getting to Moloka‘i costs around $100–$150 round trip from Honolulu. The Living Traditions Festival in Salt Lake City is free to attend. If you’re on a tight schedule, the Haleakalā demonstration is your most accessible option — it’s inside a national park, so entry fees apply. The park’s summit area sits at 10,000 feet, so bring layers even in summer.

On the Ground: What to Know Before You Go

Kapa is a tactile, slow art. Understanding a few basics will help you appreciate what you’re seeing.

The Process in Detail

Making kapa starts with the paper mulberry tree, or wauke. After the plant has been cultivated for up to two years, it is stripped of its bark. The inner bark is soaked in seawater, then fermented. The bark is then beaten with the iʻe kuku implement — a carved wooden beater. One side of the beater is smooth for the initial flattening; the other side is intricately carved to imprint a watermark during the finishing beat. Native Hawaiian and Polynesian plants are used to scent and dye the cloth. The entire process, from planting to finished cloth, can take months.

Books and Further Reading

If you want to go deeper before your trip, the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa library holds several key texts. Kapa: Hawaiian Bark Cloth by Adrienne Lois Kaeppler (1980) is the foundational reference. Material Approaches to Polynesian Barkcloth, edited by Frances Lennard and Andy Mills (2020), takes a new approach by focusing on the plants themselves and surviving objects in historic collections at The Hunterian, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Smithsonian Institution. Hawaiian Women’s Fashions: Kapa, Cotton and Silk by Agnes Terao-Guiala traces the evolution of women’s clothing from traditional kapa to European gowns. For oral history, An Oral History of Three Generations of Kapa Practitioners by Marlene A. Zeug (2017) presents the stories of Kaʻiulani de Silva, Verna Takashima, and Zeug herself.

Questions About Kapa in Hawai‘i

What is kapa made from?

Kapa is made from the inner bark of the paper mulberry tree, known in Hawaiian as wauke. The tree is cultivated for up to two years before harvesting.

The bark is stripped, soaked in seawater, fermented, and then beaten with a carved wooden beater called an iʻe kuku. Native plants are used for scent and dye.

Is kapa still made in Hawai‘i today?

Yes, but by a small number of practitioners. The craft was nearly lost after the introduction of manufactured cloth in the nineteenth century, but a revival began in the 1970s. Artists like Roen Hufford and Verna Takashima now teach new generations.

The tradeoff is that kapa is not a commercial product — you won’t find it in gift shops. Seeing it requires seeking out a workshop or festival.

Where can I see kapa being made?

Your best options are Roen Hufford’s weekly kapa hui on Moloka‘i, cultural demonstrations at Haleakalā National Park, or the Living Traditions Festival in Salt Lake City (May 15–17).

None of these run daily. Check schedules with the National Park Service or the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage before you go.

How long does it take to make a single piece of kapa?

A single piece can take months to complete. This includes cultivating the wauke for up to two years, then the soaking, fermentation, beating, and decorating stages.

The time investment is one reason kapa never became a mass-produced item. Each piece carries the labour of months.

Why is kapa culturally significant?

Kapa was used for clothing, bedding, burial wrappings, and ceremonial dress. It also held spiritual significance — it was believed to carry the mana (life force) of the plants and people involved in its creation.

Understanding kapa offers a direct connection to pre-contact Hawaiian life, before cotton and European textiles changed the islands.

Closing

Kapa is one of those things you can’t rush. The women at Haleakalā beat bark for hours without a word, and the cloth they produced was thin enough to let light through. That patience is the whole point — and it’s exactly what makes the craft so hard to find, and so worth seeking out. For a deeper look at how traditional Hawaiian practices connect to the land, read about the ahupuaʻa system and its cultural significance.

Sources and further reading

Hawaiian Kapa: Roen Hufford. Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, 2026.

Home: Kapa Beating. National Park Service, 2023.

Kapa: Hawaiian Bark Cloth — Library Guide. University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Library.