For generations, the fishhook has been one of the most recognizable forms associated with life on the Pacific, an object in which ingenuity, craftsmanship, and beautiful form came together out of necessity.
In Hawaiʻi, the fishhook is known as makau. Long before the introduction of modern metal hooks, Hawaiian fishermen fashioned highly specialized hooks from the materials available to them, including bone, ivory and shell, often secured with remarkably strong cordage made from olonā fiber. Their forms varied according to their purpose, with different hooks and lures developed for different fish and methods of fishing. Historic examples preserved by Bishop Museum show just how refined these objects could be, with carefully shaped incurved points, barbs and intricate fiber lashings.
It is that combination of utility and artistry that drew us to the fishhook as the basis for this piece. Rather than reproducing any one historic hook, we wanted to take its unmistakable sweeping form and reinterpret it at an exaggerated scale as a piece of functional ceramic art.
We call it Mighty Makau.
The result is a towering hook rising from its sculpted base, with an aged bone-like finish, deeply carved details and heavy cordage wrapping the upper shank. The cocktail itself sits within the hook's dramatic curve, allowing the negative space that makes the original form so recognizable to remain a defining part of the sculpture.
Mighty Makau is produced as a Laguna Studio run, made in limited quantities. Due to the labor involved, only a small number can be completed at a time, and we may limit or pause orders depending on how many are outstanding. We don’t currently have plans to revisit this form once production concludes, and any future versions, if they happen, would likely differ in finish or execution.
These mugs are made to order, but not a pre-order. Production is already underway, with the first batches currently in progress. Finished pieces ship weekly as they emerge from their final kiln firing, with orders fulfilled in the order they are received.
What began centuries ago as an ingenious tool shaped by life on the Pacific endures today as one of its most distinctive forms. Mighty Makau celebrates the craftsmanship, ingenuity and beauty of that form through the lens of the art we love, reimagined at an extraordinary scale as a dramatic vessel meant to be filled, displayed, and enjoyed.
