The Hawaiian gentleman known as Old Kalama was locally well-known and widely respected as a practitioner, or Kahuna, of Laʻau Lapaʻau, or Hawaiian herbal medicine. John and Kate Kelly visited him at his home, and he has been immortalized in several photographs and etchings done by the artist couple.
John Kelly is shown visiting Old Kalama at his home in the Palolo area.
Another photo by Kate, circa 1930s, showing Old Kalama at his home
This etching by John Kelly, a detailed likeness of “Old Kalama,” was included in Etchings and Drawings of Hawaiians, by John Kelly, a collection of offset prints published by the Star Bulletin in 1943.
