In 2007, visiting artist Paul Morrison painted a botanically themed mural above the reflecting pool at what was then The Contemporary Museum. Called "Gamodeme" after a scientific term for an isolated breeding community, the critique inherent in the title has outlasted its physical presence.

Morrison left us a lasting model of our art production system: It is indeed isolated, though certainly not quarantined. And though it sustains itself in an insular fashion, it is nevertheless stable.

"HI/NY" is an inaugural effort to alter the dynamics of our gamodeme.

The results are on display in Susan Callahan Kang’s garage, which she recently converted into an improvised gallery space on Wai­alae Iki Ridge. Callahan Kang is a recent University of Hawaii at Manoa Bachelor of Fine Arts graduate. Yes, a gallery that is not in Central Hono­lulu!

Curated by UH professor Debra Drexler, the show brings together artists from Hawaii and New York as a concrete document of the art immersion tour that Drexler led last summer.

There is probably no better contrast to New York’s hot density and hyper-development than the uninterrupted and gently curving horizon visible from The Garage’s Ohia­loke Street driveway. With the door up, one is presented with an Alexander Calder-inspired mobile and sculpture by Roland Longstreet flanked by paintings by Callahan Kang and Drexler. Along the left wall are works by the New York artists, with the locally produced offerings on the right.

There is no overt unifying theme in the show, and for the most part the works lack any clear aesthetic resonance between them. Each artist stands on his or her own, occupying different points in their respective careers and practices. Where Drexler represents veteran’s status and skill level with the richly textured intergalactic impressions of "Myths of Time and Space," Mari Maeda’s portrait of a mason jar full of razor blades ("Rainy Day Fund") is more of a well-executed technical study in texture, light and refraction.

One could read Liam Davis’ diptych as a counter to Maeda’s fledgling existentialism. The first canvas frames assorted negative admonitions: "fearless," "eatless," "whineless" in a cartoon thought bubble, while the second balances each of them with a positive inversion: "hopemore," "chewmore," "saymore" surrounded in a bubble. The repetition of both sets of phrases evokes both chalkboard punishments and mantras. There is a tension between thought and speech that Callahan Kang’s work picks up on.

"Kui Lee Song" samples her family’s photographs from the 1960s and translates them to paint. She replaces a mechanics of easy recognition and representation with one that works with absence, blurring, semilegibility, color and texture. A longtime Hawaii resident, she is starting to explore issues of nostalgia, privilege and white identity through her work.

This subliminal theme of local vs. indigenous identity plays against New York artist Michele Zalopany’s "Kahili" series. Detroit born and of mixed African-American and Hawaiian ancestry, Zalopany’s grayscale watercolors effectively masquerade as pen-and-ink drawings. They portray installations from the Bishop Museum — bringing attention to the differences between culture as it is practiced and culture as it is remembered or preserved. Her paintings also have the feel of old photos, and knowing that she is not "local" but has a "blood right" to represent Hawaiian identity feels like the tip of an iceberg.

The work of self-identified Hawaiian artist Nicole Naone completes this miniature conceptual assemblage by being less about exploring or reflecting identity and more about riding its curves. "HI/NY" presents two pieces from her "MASS" series, an ambitious 2-D and 3-D exploration of the space between a woman’s knees and solar plexus. In addition to the small-scale cherry-red extrusion of abstract fertility that is "Beached" is her giant wooden sculpture that has been recognized as a woman’s exaggerated hips, buttocks and waist … and as a horse.

Admittedly this constellation of Hawaii-related issues is largely a projection, but it is an actual byproduct of bringing artists together who are separated by generational and geographic gaps.

As a debut effort, "HI/NY" is a proof-of-concept for the space, and it makes Hawaii’s numerous connections to mainland art scenes visible and tangible.

Making a "here-and-there" or "here-vs.-there" statement isn’t Drexler’s or Callahan Kang’s point. But energizing local discourse, providing another venue for showing work, and following through on the inspiration of a New York visit is.