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As students consider college majors, some put their passions aside for a major that has better potential for a reliable paycheck and steady employment.

For Lokahi Lunn ’11, passion won out, and 51���� showed him that passion and a steady income do not have to be mutually exclusive.

When he arrived at Pacific as a freshman, he started out pursuing a degree in kinesiology. Then he tried out business. In the end, neither subject held his interest like art did.

“Finally I was like, ‘Man, I’ve gotta do art.’ That’s really what I wanted to do,” Lunn said. “Once I did that, I believe late in my sophomore year, college ended up being a lot more fun, a lot more interesting.”

Art was Lunn’s passion. It was also his way to find his place in the family’s business. 

Since graduating in 2011, Lunn has been a graphic designer for , an apparel company founded in 1985 by his mother, Danene, specializing in Hawaiian-themed designs. Today, Lunn and his mother are the primary design team for the company, which sells apparel in two stores on Oʻahu and online.

Lunn admits it was a scary decision to follow his passion for art instead of a major that had a better track record of paying the bills. Pacific not only encouraged his decision, he said, but showed how art can be a fulfilling career both for the soul and the pocketbook.

“My advisor, (professor emeritus of art) Jan Shield, played a big role,” Lunn said. “After telling him about my family business, he helped me to not just focus artistically on one item, but also make it a product. He asked, ‘If you design something, how can you design it for a product for hundreds of people?’ It wasn’t just focused on one art piece. It was really eye-opening.”

The experience helped shape the way that Lunn would be able to make art into his full-time profession. For starters, it was about framing his purpose. As an artist, he said, you design for yourself more than anything else. As a graphic designer, you design for a larger audience. It was a lesson that Shield taught Lunn through mentorship on his senior capstone, where he created designs for a variety of items.

“I did shoes, I did hats. I did a couple of mats, stuff like that,” Lunn said. “I did a lot of artwork on blank products to try and turn them into something to sell. I was into more tattoo-style stuff back then, so that’s what I focused on.

“You’ve got to find a good blend of an artist and a designer, and that’s what I try to do.”