ABOUT HULA NATION

Our Mission

Hula Nation is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization whose mission is to inspire health and beauty through art and movement. Facilitating workshops to assist in developing skills for individuals in urban and rural communities.

 Since 2012, Hula Nation has facilitated workshops on HoopYogini dance at various schools, yoga and wellness centers, and events around the NYC area, including festivals such as BAM Dance Africa, TAMA, Hampton's Yoga Festival, and Wanderlust. We've collaborated with artists across the US, creating pop-ups and other curated event. To date, Hula Nation has participated in over 300 events and festivals through NYC and around the world. 

In June 2019, Hula Nation began its international expansion. Hula Nation had the opportunity to work with the Kazo community in the city of Kampala in Uganda in collaboration with Paper Fig Foundation, dedicated to empowering through Fashion and Fine Arts, and IGC Fashion, a sustainable fashion brand working with different communities to make fashion more inclusive.

  • KISORO, UGANGA

Our Global Work

Hula Nation is expanding into global terrains, inspiring, and being inspired to create shifting change.

In February 2020 Hula Nation returned to Uganda to implement and expand the capacity to do impactful work to support the dreams of rural Ugandan people, especially the women and children through art and movement workshops. Our objective was to create 100 dreamcatcher making kits and macrame art for purpose on developing skills in craft-making to strengthen economic opportunities for local Ugandan women and families through ongoing workshops and skills training sessions.

Our Founder

  • Isamar Gonzalez

    Isamar Gonzalez is a visionary multi-disciplinary artist and educator who draws from her rich Afro-Latin heritage to create vibrant and immersive works of art that celebrate cultural identity and self-expression. Born in Puerto Rico and raised in the Bronx, Isamar's art is deeply influenced by urban, Indigenous, African, and Taino cultures, reflecting the diverse tapestry of her upbringing. With over 30 years of experience in the fashion industry, she has developed a keen eye for design and honed her skills in textile art, metalsmithing, fashion, jewelry design and hoop dance.

    Her work, featured at prestigious venues such as Art Basel Miami, Brooklyn Museum and various exhibitions throughout New York, uses textiles as a medium to explore the relationship between identity and adornment, transforming the body into a canvas for authenticity and confidence. Isamar's practice is infused with an innate sense of adventure, carefully sourcing materials from global artisans, including a women’s cooperative in Guatemala.

    In 2011, Isamar founded Hula Nation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to community building through art and movement workshops worldwide. Through Hula Nation, Isamar teaches hoop dance, art, and movement, inspiring embodied joy and fitness in communities and fostering a sense of belonging and creative empowerment. Based in Brooklyn but touching lives around the globe, Isamar continues to empower and uplift individuals by celebrating the shared lineage of creativity, radiance, and transformative power inherent in us all.