Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House facts for kids
The Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House is a special place in Honolulu, Hawaii. It used to be called The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu. This museum was once the only one in Hawaii completely focused on contemporary art, which is art made in our time.
Today, the Spalding House is part of the larger Honolulu Museum of Art. It has two main locations: the beautiful historic Spalding House in a residential area of Honolulu, and another spot downtown Honolulu at the First Hawaiian Center. Both places are open for everyone to visit and enjoy.
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Discovering Amazing Artworks
The museum's collection holds many incredible pieces of art. It features works by famous artists from all over the world. When The Contemporary Museum joined the Honolulu Museum of Art, all these artworks became part of the larger museum's collection. You can often see these pieces at both the Spalding House and the main museum building.
Some of the artists whose works are part of this collection include:
- Vito Acconci
- Josef Albers
- Jennifer Bartlett
- Dale Chihuly
- Jim Dine
- David Hockney
- Jasper Johns
- Sol LeWitt
- Louise Nevelson
- Kenneth Price
- David Smith
- Kiki Smith
- Frank Stella
- Andy Warhol
- William Wegman
A Look at the Spalding House History
The Spalding House has a rich past. It was built in 1925 as a grand home for Anna Rice Cooke. She was also involved in building the Honolulu Museum of Art on another site. The famous architect Hart Wood designed the Makiki Heights home.
From Home to Art Space
In 1968, Anna Cooke's daughter, Alice Spalding, gave the estate to the Honolulu Academy of Arts. For a while, it showed Japanese prints. Later, in 1986, the Thurston Twigg-Smith family turned it into The Contemporary Museum. After some updates, the museum opened its doors to the public in October 1988. Besides art galleries, it had a shop, a cafe, and offices.
Beautiful Gardens and Sculptures
The gardens around the Spalding House are also very special. They were first designed between 1928 and 1941. Later, landscape architects like James C. Hubbard and Leland Miyano helped make them even more beautiful. As you walk through the gardens, you can see outdoor sculptures by artists such as:
- Satoru Abe
- Charles Arnoldi
- Deborah Butterfield
- George Rickey
- Toshiko Takaezu
- DeWain Valentine
- Arnold Zimmerman
The Spalding House is located at 2411 Makiki Heights Drive, Honolulu, Hawaii. 21°18′43″N 157°49′58″W / 21.31194°N 157.83278°W
Art in Downtown Honolulu
The museum also has a location in downtown Honolulu at the First Hawaiian Center. This spot opened in 1996. It focuses on showing art from Hawaii. The First Hawaiian Bank helps support these exhibits. Today, the staff from the Honolulu Museum of Art takes care of the art shown here.
Joining Forces: The Museum Merger
On May 2, 2011, The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, became part of the Honolulu Museum of Art. This was a big change! The galleries and gardens at both locations stayed open to the public. The staff from The Contemporary Museum joined the team at the Honolulu Museum of Art.
The director of The Contemporary Museum became a deputy director at the larger museum. The art experts became a new Department of Contemporary Art. Over 3,000 artworks, along with other resources, were moved to the Honolulu Museum of Art. The building in Makiki Heights went back to its original name, "Spalding House."
