Awards & Articles
HAWAIʻI Magazine’s 2014, 2015, 2016 Reader’s Choice Award
“Congratulations again to Maui Hands for receiving our 2014 Readers’ Choice Award. It really is a testament for a business to place in HAWAIʻI Magazine’s Readers’ Choice Awards. HAWAIʻI Magazine does not provide any choices or suggestions for the categories. Readers really need to know and remember the businesses they want to vote for. Being that the majority of HAWAIʻI Magazine’s readers are on the mainland, this award says a lot about the businesses they vote for!”
Pride of Maui – No. 1 Art Gallery on Maui
“With four locations around the Island of Maui, Maui Hands has their art gallery formula down. They represent over 300 local fine artists, jewelers, potters, glassblowers, sculptors, woodworkers and various artisans. Their first location opened in Makawao in 1992 and have since grown to a collection of four Maui Hands galleries around the corners of the island: Makawao, Paʻia, Lahaina and Kaʻanapali. Each gallery offers a rotation of art shows on display, and live local artists for weekly events.
Best of Lahaina Awards – Art Galleries and Dealers – U.S. Local Business Association (USLBA)
Welcome to the Lahaina Business Hall of Fame! Maui Hands is among a very small group of companies that have won the Best of Lahaina Award for ten consecutive years. This distinction has qualified Maui Hands for the 2017 Lahaina Business Hall of Fame.
Maui News – Voted by Readers – Best Art Gallery on Maui 2009
“From Lahaina’s busy Front Street, through the casual beach-side elegance of the Hyatt Regency Kaʻanapali, all the way to local, laid-back Paʻia, Maui Hands Gallery is The Maui News readers’ choice as the island’s best art gallery. In its collection representing some 300 artists in a variety of mediums, a theme underlying the beauty on display is a deeper reflection of island life – not just the spectacular scenery but the emotions and awe it brings out in creative souls. All of the artists represented are local to Hawaiʻi; a significant number are local to Maui. Opened by Panna Speas Cappelli in 1992 to create what she calls “a much needed retail space for a multitude of talented Hawaiian artisans,” the gallery currently operates three locations, offering a rich selection of unique locally created pieces in every medium and style. “The beauty of it all is that the income stays right here in our own community,” she adds. “And with financial rewards being so low this past year for all 320 of us involved with Maui Hands, the knowledge that lots of people voted for us is especially sweet”
Maui Time Weekly – Voted by local readers – Best art gallery on Maui 2009 & 2017
There is certainly a high proportion of art galleries on-island, and understandably so. But such a profusion may actually be quite paralyzing for those who want to check out, and possibly buy, a decent piece of art or two. A gallery must have a plan, a theme, a common thread to lure people in. With it’s four locations (Paʻia, Makawao, Lahaina, Kaʻanapali) and a somewhat enigmatic name, Maui Hands doesn’t just display a few overpriced Maui-inspired landscapes. Instead, owner Panna Speas seeks to highlight the work of artists living on Maui. This makes for a sweeping collection of paintings, ceramics, jewelry and even hand cremes for your viewing and/or purchasing pleasure.
The Crafts Report – Profile In Success by Richelle Tremaine
Maui Hands – The Hawaiian Touch
Panna Speas is not an artist but she certainly has the heart and soul of one. Because of her upbringing, she’s always had an appreciation for good art, music, dance and writing. Speas is the guiding force and vision behind Maui Hands, four galleries scattered across beautiful Maui, featuring the handmade works of Hawaiian artisans. The inspiration to start a gallery came largely due to meeting artists who were very good, but didn’t have the right venue for their work. “It really started with me liking small, beautiful things,” Speas says. Initially Maui Hands started with 25 artists and borrowed $2,000, use mostly to cover deposits. When Speas first decided to open a gallery, she forced herself to make five cold calls to artists every night before dinner, asking if they would give her some of their work to carry in her new gallery.
MAUI Nō Ka ʻOi Magazine
Keepin’ it Real
A short stroll south on Lahaina’s Front Street now offers rich rewards for art enthusiasts and beachcombers alike. In a sea of “Made in Taiwan” keepsakes, the new Maui Hands, kitty corner to the Banyan Tree, is a mixed media treasure chest of genuine Hawaiian-made artwork. Just like its sister galleries in the Hyatt Kaʻanapali, Makawao and Paʻia, the Lahaina location carries the eclectic work of some 300+ local artists and artisans working in a variety of media, including oils on canvas, ceramic, glass, gold, and native woods. These artsy finds offer everything from exquisite to funky – just not phony.
BEST OF MAUI, MAUI NEWS
MAUI HANDS
Hawaiʻi’s largest collection of local artists and artisans – 300+ in all – are represented in a unique and eclectic array of paintings, ceramics, prints, sculpture, woodwork, jewelry and hand-blown glass, as well as distinctive accessories for kitchen and bath. With the exception of limited edition prints, every piece is made by hand, and therefore on-of-a-kind. You’ll have to visit all four stores to see it all!