Bumpei Akaji

Bumpei Akaji (, January 30, 1921 – October 27, 2002) was an American Hawaiian sculptor of Japanese descent. He was known for welding large copper and brass sculptures which can be seen all over Hawaii as part of Hawaii's Art in Public Places program.

Biography Bumpei Akaji was born in 1921, in Lawai, on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, Territory of Hawaii. In 1943 he joined the United States Army and was sent to Italy with the 100th Battalion of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

He was inspired by the frescoes and mosaics he saw in Florence and Ravenna. After discharge from the army, he stayed in Italy to study at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze in Florence and at the Brera Academy in Milan, on a Fulbright Scholarship. In 1950, he returned to Honolulu, and in 1951, was the first to receive a Master of Fine Arts in sculpture from the University of Hawaii at Mānoa. In 1959 he created his first commission, which displayed at the Ala Moana Center.

Akaji learned welding from a local mechanic and is now best known for his large-scale welded copper and brass sculptures, which are both organic and abstract in nature, as typified by Cyparissus. The welded and/or pounded surfaces of his sculptures are often warm and sensual and over time develop a unique patina.

He died on October 27, 2002, in Honolulu at the age of 81.

Works The Hawaii State Art Museum and the Honolulu Museum of Art are among the public collections holding Akaji's work. Many of his works were commissioned by the state as part of Hawaii's Art in Public Places program, which designates 1% of construction funds in new public buildings to acquiring art. His sculptures in public places include:

Untitled sculpture, Leilehua High School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1976 Na Mana Nu Oli, Bishop Trust Company, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1969 Koaie, Anuenue Elementary School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1972 Nani Kauai: Ke Mau Nei Ke Ea O Kauai I Puhi Aina Malu (Beautiful Kauai: The spirit of Kauai thrives in the peaceful land of Puhi), Kauai Community College, Lihue, Hawaii, 1977 Untitled sculpture, Hana High and Elementary School, Hana, Hawaii, 1977 Pule Oo, Molokai Public Library, Kaunakakai, Hawaii, 1973 Reflections 1989, Kauai High School, Lihue, Hawaii, 1989 Makaa eIke Aku i ke Awawa Uluwehi i na Kuahiwi o Manoa (Glowing Eyes Looking at the Lush Valley in the Mountains of Manoa, 1979) and VVV (1995), University of Hawaii at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1995 Moanalua, Moanalua High School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1976 Pupu Ao Ewa, Ewa Beach Community School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1972 Gushing Waters, Waipahu Elementary School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1978 Wilia i uka, wilia i kai, Pope Elementary School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1977 Hana Hihi-u O Na Makani Ika-ika O Hono Kaa, Honakaa School, Honokaa, Hawaii, 1975 Hoolana, University of Hawaii at Hilo, Hilo, Hawaii, 1984 Maui Snares the Sun, Maui Memorial Hospital, Wailuku, Hawaii, 1981 The Sun God, Wailuku State Office Building, Wailuku, Hawaii, 1970 The Eternal Flame, Hawaii State Capitol Mall, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1974 Birds Aloft, Ala Moana Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1966 Wai Hoola a Lono, Koloa Public School & Library, Koloa, Hawaii, 1973 Brothers in Valor Memorial, Fort DeRussy Military Reservation, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1996 Untitled copper sculpture, President William McKinley High School, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1963