Diamond Head by Moonlight

Executed during the artist’s first stay in Hawaii, this is a rare and captivating moonlit view of turn-of-the-century Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head. Visible are the lights of several beachfront homes and the gentle break of waves along the shoreline. Between its darkened palette and emphasis on tonal harmonies, the painting is perhaps the strongest testament to Wores’s formative friendship with Whistler, whose famous series of “nocturnes” captured maritime scenes by night. In April 1902, the canvas was one of 22 Hawaiian views exhibited in a one-man show at the Pacific Hardware Company, Honolulu.