Studio Kōlea

Ezgi Iraz is a Turkish American immigrant visual artist and creative director residing as a guest in Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi. Her acrylic paintings explore rest as a form of resistance for women, using her Turkish heritage and Ottoman Islamic motifs to initiate a respectful visual dialogue within the context of her daily life in the islands. Operating as a guest artist, her depiction of the muʻumuʻu stems directly from her personal experiences within the local community, portraying these cross-cultural spaces as a way to actively question her own position as a guest within the complex history of Hawaiʻi. A former global creative art director at LEGO, Iraz focuses her practice on challenging capitalist hustle culture, creating quiet visual spaces that invite women to listen their body and choose rest.