The stone work of native Hawaiian Fred Kanoho look and feel as if the object was a thousand years old. The distinctive soft-edged, smoothly worn feeling was achieved by hand-chipping the stone into "its" desired form, and then countless hours of rubbing stone on stone to create the smooth finish that is the hallmark of of this master artisan's work.

The stone found in the Hawaiian Islands is all volcanic. The texture (from lava-rough to streambed-smooth) depends upon how the stone emerges from the ground. If the stone is pitted and rough, it was thrust out of the earth during a volcanic eruption. The smoother-textured stones are those that have been held below the surface, where erosion has had a chance to grind the stone down. Look carefully, and you can usually find the sparkle of crystalline substances within these island stones . . . the volcanic "diamonds" of Hawai'i.

All of Fred's handcrafted work is from water-worn stones gathered from Maui's riverbeds and beaches, with - as Fred expressed it - "great reverence and aloha for the skill and wisdom of the ancient ones."

As Fred often told his collectors . . . "I'm three-quarters Hawaiian, but I don't speak the language of my ancestors. I don't know a lot about the old time and the old ways. What I do know is in my hands, and I've learned to find out what is in the stones. Stone carving is a dying art. When I first started I looked everywhere for someone to teach me. There was nobody. I had to learn from the stone. When I work the stone I feel like I'm being Hawaiian the best way I can."

Fred always encouraged the new owners of his stone work to allow other people to touch the stone . . . "Hey, go 'head and put your hand on it, doesn't it feel friendly", he would say. A kapuna (an elder teacher) once told Fred that there was great mana (spiritual energy) in his work. Perhaps that's because Fred listened closely to what the stone was telling him!

Finally, a word about the reported "tradition" of bad luck befalling those who remove lava rock from the islands. Is there really a Kapu (prohibition) against taking lava rock off-island? Well, yes and no. According to Fred, it is all a case of intention. If one "steals" a piece of lava rock, removing it from where it has rested for who-knows-how-long, particularly if it has been taken from an alter or heiau (temple), then it may indeed bring "bad luck".

Fred's lava stones, on the other hand, have been gathered with loving consciousness and great respect from Maui's streambeds and beaches, not sacred places. His artwork was created to be taken anywhere in the world, with the blessing of this Hawaiian artist's aloha!