News Release

Musician and Textile Artist Selected as January 2018 Artists-in-Residence

Elsa and Will Oldham

Courtesy Photo/Christian Hansen

News Release Date: December 13, 2017

Contact: Jessica Ferracane, 808-985-6018

Hawaii National Park, HI – Musician Will Oldham – who performs under the name Bonnie “Prince” Billy – and his wife, textile artist Elsa Hansen Oldham, have been selected as the January 2018 Artists-in-Residence at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. 

The non-profit National Parks Arts Foundation (NPAF) announced the selection of singer/songwriter Oldham, whose music is described as an alternative blend of country, folk and punk, and his wife, whose quilting and cross stitch work puts a folksy pop-art spin on history and modern culture.

The pair will present a dual multimedia performance on January 26, 2018 in the Kīlauea Visitor Center at 6 p.m. Will Oldham will sing and play music while Elsa Hansen Oldham stitches on stage as her handiwork is projected on the auditorium’s movie screen.  

“As the park enters our fourth year of the Artist-in-Residence Program, we look forward to our second musician and first textile artist,” said Laura Carter Schuster, Chief of Cultural Resources at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. “Hawai‘i has such a long tradition of both music and quilting, this pair seems like a match for our location.  And the park will inspire both the musician and the fabric artist alike,” she said.

The couple lives in Louisville, KY and will reside in the park for a month. Oldham has performed since 1998 as Bonnie “Prince” Billy, and prior to that as Palace Brothers and Palace Music. His songs have been performed by Johnny Cash, Marianne Faithful and others. His new record, Best Troubadour, is a collection of Merle Haggard songs. Hansen Oldham’s textile art is displayed at the Dickinson Roundell Gallery in New York, and she was recently profiled in the New York Times.

The project is supported by the Friends of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, and other benefactors. The NPAF is a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to the promotion of the national parks through creating dynamic opportunities for artwork based in the natural and historic heritage of America. All NPAF programs are made possible through the philanthropic support of donors. Visit www.nationalparksartsfoundation.org for details.

-NPS-