Better Together: A New Artist Space for Weird Friends
Formerly known as Lana Lane Studios, the artist collective Weird Friends has made a new home in Kaka‘ako.
In ever-evolving Kaka‘ako, permanence is fleeting—something Lana Lane Studios’ founders understood when they created the artist co-op in an industrial warehouse there in 2012. But that didn’t make it any easier to close shop in 2023 to make way for a new condo development.
“Those were the early days of Kaka‘ako and the Pow! Wow! festival,” Jasper Wong, one of the co-founders, says. “A lot of artists built their careers, met other artists, or even fell in love in that space. It meant a lot to us.”
Luckily, its members didn’t have to go far. When a run-down, two-story building on Halekauwila Street became available, they took on the reno and relocated last fall. The hub offers new perks: street-facing studios, a parking lot and individual units. The move also birthed an official new name—Weird Friends.
“In Hawai‘i, there aren’t a lot of spaces for artists,” Wong says. “You need a place where you can be collaborative, where you can be messy, where you can connect with each other, and work and create together.”
