Maui painter, textile designer, picture book author & illustrator

Julia Allisson Cost was born and raised in upcountry Maui, Hawai‘i by a family of many artists. She has been painting professionally since 2005. In addition to selling her paintings and giclées, she also designs textiles and has a fabric shop within her family’s art gallery. Her paintings and fabrics are collected around the world. In 2023, she published The Girl and the Boat, her first picture book, which tells a story of friendship through 30 richly detailed oil paintings. The book is now carried in shops around the country.
Julia earned a double BA in Studio Art and Dance from Scripps College and an MFA in Dance from University of California, Irvine. Get a deeper glimpse into her family of artists, inspiration, and textile design process here.
Website: juliacost.com · Instagram: @juliaallissoncost
Kula Kings, 2020
Hāna Bouquet, 2023
The Soloist (in Red), 2013
Lei for Sale, 2020
Picnic Scene, 2022
Sweet Summer Blues, 2023
Dancing Lady Orchids, 2018
Waiakoa Wildflowers, 2023
Harvest Day, 2024
Bowl of Paradise, 2021
Tehana’s Ipu, 2018
Kēōkea Bouquet, 2023
See all of Julia’s paintings →
Fabric featuring her oil and watercolor paintings, printed by the yard and made up into clothing, jackets, tea towels and more.
Protea Bouquet
Hāna Bouquet
Yellow Bouquet
Kula Strawberry
Paniolo
Hula Watercolor
Native Hawaiian Birds
Orchid Ginger
Jacaranda
Artful Jackets
Tea Towels
Shop the boutique at juliacost.com →

Julia’s first picture book, published in 2023: a wordless tale of friendship told through 30 of her oil paintings. It is carried in shops around the country, and the paintings from it — Picnic Scene and Lemon Scene among them — are in the gallery.

Search all paintings and items in the shop. Try searching Jacaranda, rusty roof, or pasture.