Dan DeLuz: A Special Man Who Embodied the Hawaiian Spirit of Sharing Graciously
By Tiffany DeEtte Shafto
A wave of grief swept through Hawai‘i’s woodworking community as news of the passing of a beloved mentor, friend, and master woodturner, made its way along the coconut wireless. Dan DeLuz inspired a generation of woodworkers by openly sharing everything he learned from his path of mastering his art. A heart attack took Dan on January 15, 2012 at 77 years young. “It was a blessing he went so quickly and peacefully,” remarked Mary Lou DeLuz, Dan’s wife of 26 years. “It would have driven him crazy if he hadn’t been able to work.”
In The Beginning
Dan DeLuz, the boy from Pa‘auilo who grew up in Hilo, spent his first career on O‘ahu as a roofing contractor. After returning to Hilo in the 1968, Dan had a chance encounter with a lathe while repairing his neighbor’s roof. Dan mentioned he’d like to buy it and his neighbor gave it to him—a serendipitous moment that transformed Dan’s life. Listening to his stories about using truck springs for gouges and building his own lathe out of a ’47 Chevy truck transmission, Dan’s passion for his craft was obvious. That passion led him to become world-renowned for his thin-rimmed, beautifully balanced calabashes—though fame never was a goal for the very humble Dan.
In 1970, Dan opened his first woodshop, Hawaiian Handcraft, on Kino‘ole Street in Hilo. He later moved to Kilauea Street and renamed it Dan DeLuz Woods. It was there he met Jay Warner, the then 25-year-old looking for work as a woodworker. While he denied Jay a job at first, Dan eventually offered shop space in exchange for a percentage of sales. “I remember him telling me, ‘Go across the street and GET YOUR license—then you can work in my shop,’” recalls Jay. “I felt like I’d been handed the keys to the kingdom!”
Through their mutual appreciation for trees and wood, a unique bond formed between the two and Jay became Dan’s hānai (adopted) son. Jay’s stories of Dan, including his times wooing Mary Lou while she was a musician at The Green Door in Hilo, bring smiles and laughter. “Dan would go blow himself up (Dan’s phrase for dusting himself off with the air hose) and get ready for a night at The Green Door. He had this dog, Spotty, and he’d make me come keep the thing from jumping in his truck so he could drive across the street to see Mary Lou,” shares Jay.
Dan and Mary Lou had grown up together in Hilo’s Villa Franca. Apparently Dan was afraid of Mary Lou’s father—a warrant officer in the National Guard—and the two went their separate ways after high school, and were reunited later in life. They married in 1985 and then relocated the shop to Mountain View where it remains open today.
From 1991 to 2009, Dan and Mary Lou operated a second gallery in Waimea. “Those were some of the most fun and relaxing years of our marriage,” recalls Mary Lou. Although work was involved, Dan was able to pull himself away from the lathe on weekends and the two would go out for dinner. The quiet time in the country and the fun interaction with their collectors and friends provide fond memories for Mary Lou.
Creative Spirit
For Dan, it was the creative process—the making—that brought him joy. He’d rough turn a calabash to about an inch thick then wait for a full year for it to dry and stabilize before finishing the bowl. Every step of the way his creative process was on display and he was always willing to take a break to talk story, answer questions, and offer a cup of coffee. Watching Dan turn was a delight—the ribbons of shavings piling up at his feet as he guided the gouge in a seemingly effortless way— the way only years of practice could allow. His island chains, tikis, bud vases, salad servers, and spoon sets kept him busy carving when he wasn’t turning. And sanding filled his time further. He had patience and drive—a unique combination that enabled him to produce an abundance of beautiful work.
Working so closely with nature, Dan developed a knowledge and appreciation for Hawai‘i’s trees and their woods. He epitomized the Hawaiian value, “I ola ‘oe, I ola mākou nei,” (My life is dependent on yours. Your life is dependent on mine), and practiced protection of the living forest by purchasing wood from dead, fallen, and dying trees, or trees that were being removed near homes for safety issues.
His imagination and ingenuity led him to create collections of his work—sets of calabashes made from different woods to showcase nature’s beauty. While he sold several sets over the years, a Dan DeLuz Collection of 68 large calabashes is currently available for purchase. Most of the calabashes are from locally grown woods, though some are from turning blocks sent to him by friends on the mainland. (He had quite the following and blocks of wood had a way of showing up at his shop.)
Dan’s creative spirit gave him a special way with animals, plants, and even people. Lightning and Tiger, two of his long-term shop cats, were joined by several more when a group of feral kittens found his soft spot. He always had a shop dog, and at one time even a cockatiel that would perch on his shoulder while he worked. With his green thumb, he turned the former pasture around his shop and gallery into a garden full of fruit trees and vibrant tropical flowers. Dan’s green thumb extended beyond his beautiful garden—he seemed to help everything around him grow, including a community of woodworkers.
Growing A Community
While it is easy to appreciate a work of art, Dan fostered appreciation for the art of making—the kind of appreciation that transforms lives and leads people to follow their own creative passions. Woodworkers from around the globe would make the pilgrimage to meet Dan DeLuz and he’d humbly shake off their praise and answer their questions. Thanks to Dan’s special spirit and willingness to share, Dan DeLuz Woods became a gathering place for Hawai‘i’s woodworkers. For them, seeing him in action became addictive. What would he be up to this time?
With a consistent flow of visitors—frequently woodworkers asking questions or just coming by for a visit—it’s remarkable Dan produced so much work. He’d often comment that he got up early to get a jump on the day—out turning at 3 and 4 am so he could keep his galleries filled with his latest creations. Dan supported many other local woodworkers by selling their work at his galleries in addition to his own.
“The spirit Dan embodied helped establish a sense of sharing, which is evident today within the Big Island Woodturners Club, the West Hawai‘i Woodturners Club, and the Hawai‘i Wood Guild,” says Robert (Bob) K. Masuda, Dan’s friend of nearly 40 years. “He was one of a handful who helped build the foundation for Hawai‘i’s special fellowship of outstanding, world-class woodworkers.”
Amazed by what Dan could do, Bob would purchase Dan’s works for omiyage and special gifts for presentations around the world during Bob’s time as an international YMCA executive, and a friendship was born. “The Hawaiian calabash has the meaning of being a vessel for sharing and koa has the unique distinction of only growing in Hawai‘i so Dan’s work was the perfect gift of, and from, Hawai‘i,” shares Bob.
Over the years, Dan would tell Bob that he should learn how to turn and as Bob reached retirement, he finally agreed. “Dan was my sensei,” shares Bob. “I was fortunate enough to receive lessons from my friend and watch as he shared his knowledge with me and countless others, including most of the now well-known woodworkers.”
Dan knew the importance of teaching and was happy to share his knowledge with anyone who was interested, and yet he had only one true apprentice—his grandson, Shaun Reegan. Over the course of eight years, Dan shared his shop and techniques with Shaun. Dan’s pride in his grandson’s work was evident and he often spoke of how naturally Shaun took to turning.
Continuing On
Mary Lou has kept Dan’s gallery and shop open. It is her connection to all that her husband created. Now left with stacks of roughed-out calabashes that have waited far longer than a year to dry, Shaun is finishing what his grandfather started. “Most of the calabashes in the gallery are still his,” says Shaun. “As I’m going through the roughed out bowls, I see many I worked on years ago. The date is written in my handwriting.”
“I was always impressed with how expertly Shaun learned from Dan and was able to develop his own style while also replicating his grandfather’s work,” says Bob, who had the pleasure of observing the apprenticeship over the years.
“Dan made the most beautiful and authentically shaped Hawaiian hardwood umeke and calabash bowls of various shapes and styles.”
Shaun is now spending his weekends at his grandparentsʻ shop turning and carving just like his grandfather taught him to do. “It’s been several years, but it’s a bit like riding a bike. I’m getting back into the swing of things and this doesn’t feel like work. I am really enjoying it.”
Mary Lou finds it a blessing to have her grandson finishing what her husband started. “It is so nice to have Shaun here to help me. He’s really doing beautiful work and has even been able to replicate Dan’s scale model of the Hawaiian Island chain.”
“You’re only as good as your tools, my grandpa used to say,” shares Shaun. Fortunately for him, he’s been left the tools and the know-how to carry on a family legacy.
Remembering
On January 26, 2012, more than 600 people gathered at Dodo Mortuary to pay their respects to Dan and his family. With standing room only at his service, Mayor Billy Kenoi declared January 25, 2012 as Dan DeLuz Day in Hawai‘i County—a beautiful tribute to a talented maker. When Renee Godoy, Dan’s daughter, asked all the woodworkers in the crowd to stand, a quarter of the room stood up. It was clear that Dan left behind more than his family—he left behind a community that shared his love and appreciation for wood, trees, and art.
Dan’s creations live on and continue to connect us all through our mutual appreciation of this special man who embodied the Hawaiian spirit of sharing graciously. “It’s a year later and I still want to bring things by to show Dan,” shares Jay. “The truck almost automatically makes the turn, and then I see the empty chair.”
Dan DeLuz Woods
17-4003 Ahuahu Place
Mountain View, HI
808.968.6607, sbreegan AT gmail DOT com
Contact photographer Doug Edens: DougEdens.com
Contact writer Tiffany DeEtte Shafto: info AT ContemporaryPublications DOT com
