Local artist completes 12-story mural honoring Duke Kahanamoku, Carissa Moore

HONOLULU (KHON2) — After 25 days of work, local artist Kamea Hadar completed the 150-foot mural honoring two of Hawaii’s sports legends: Duke Kahanamoku, the godfather of modern-day surfing; and Carissa Moore, Olympic gold medalist in surfing.

The mural is about 12 stories high and is on a building near South King and Pensacola streets. Hadar began painting in October and completed it on Nov. 11.

Hadar said he used about 20 gallons of paint, 15 gallons of primer and 10 gallons of clear coat. The eyes and face, he said, were the hardest to do. However, he got the seal of approval from his subject, Carissa Moore.

“I told her to just be brutally honest with me because it is going to be up here for a long time and she said, in all honesty, she really, really enjoys the piece, and she feels honored also to be up there with Duke and so I think she genuinely does like the piece and I’m very happy,” Hadar explained.

According to Hadar, he wants to reinforce how inspirational both athletes are and share their stories with the world.