The Capitol Modern Museum, formerly (until 2023) named the Hawaii State Art Museum, is a small art gallery located on the second floor of the

No. 1 Capitol District Building The No. 1 Capitol District Building, also known as the Hemmeter Building, is a on in downtown Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Formerly known as the Armed Services YMCA Building, it houses the Capitol Modern Museum, the Hawaii State Foundatio ...

downtown Honolulu, Hawaii Downtown Honolulu is the current historic, economic, and governmental center of Honolulu, the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. It is bounded by Nuuanu Stream to the west, Ward Avenue to the east, Vineyard Boulevard to the nor ...

, United States. Long known as HiSAM, the museum is operated by the

Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts The Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts was established by the Hawaii State Legislature in 1965 to "promote, perpetuate, preserve, and encourage culture and the arts, history and the humanities as central to the quality of life of the ...

Background

The Hawaii State Art Museum first opened on November 1, 2002.

Current exhibits

The museum has temporary exhibitions, as well as a permanent display of Hawaiian art featuring a mix of Hawaii's ethnic and cultural traditions through 132 works of art by 105 artists. Predominately comprising works dating from the 1960s to the present, the exhibition depicts the expression of artists throughout the state and their profound contributions toward understanding the people of Hawaii and their aspirations.

Critical reception

When HiSAM first opened, art critic Amaury Saint-Gilles wrote that the debut collection was "an intriguing melange of island art history weaving a full-colored tapestry".

Notable artists

* Sculptor Satoru Abe (born 1926) * Sculptor Bumpei Akaji (1921–2002) * Sculptor Sean K. L. Browne (born 1953) * Sculptor

Edward M. Brownlee Edward Malcolm Brownlee (1929-2013) was an American sculptor known for his modernist architectural creations with a style influenced by the art of Oceania, Asia, and the Pacific Northwest. He is best known for his work in Hawaii, where he was a fre ...

(1929–2013) *

Mark Chai Mark Chai (born in Honolulu) is a Native Hawaiian sculptor who designs and handcrafts fine woods and recycled materials into modern lamps, sculpture, large installation art, installations and furniture."The Art of Recycling," http://www.honolu ...

(born 1954) * Jean Charlot (1898–1979) * Isami Doi (1883–1931) *

Juliette May Fraser Juliette May Fraser (January 27, 1887 – July 31, 1983) was an American painter, muralist and printmaker. She was born in Honolulu, which was then the capital city of the Kingdom of Hawaii. After graduating from Wellesley College with a de ...

(1887–1983) * Hon Chew Hee (1906–1993) * Ceramicist Jun Kaneko (born 1942) *

John Melville Kelly John Melville Kelly (1879–1962) was an American painter and printmaker. Biography He was born in Oakland, California in 1879. He studied art at the San Francisco Art Institute, Mark Hopkins Institute of Art (now the San Francisco Art Inst ...

(1877–1962) *

Sueko Matsueda Kimura Sueko Matsueda Kimura (June 10, 1912 – December 25, 2001) was an American artist. She was born in Papaikou, Hawaii in 1912. She received her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, whe ...

(1912–2001) * Ceramicist Sally Fletcher–Murchison (born 1933) * Printmaker

Huc-Mazelet Luquiens Huc-Mazelet Luquiens (1881–1961) was an American printmaker, painter and art educator who was born June 30, 1881 in Massachusetts to Jules Luquiens a French-speaking Swiss and Emma Clark who was born in Ohio. Life He graduated from Yale Uni ...

(1881–1961) * Ceramicist

David Kuraoka David Kuraoka (born 1946) is an American ceramic artist. He was born in Lihue, Hawaii, grew up on the island of Kauai, Hawaii in Hanamaulu and Lihue, and graduated from Kauai High School in 1964. Kuraoka spent his formative years in Hanamaulu wh ...

(born 1946) * Ben Norris (1910–2006) *

Louis Pohl Louis Pohl (1915 – December 22, 1999) was an American painter, illustrator, art teacher, printmaker and cartoonist. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1915. A childhood illness made it impossible to walk without pain and prevented Pohl from en ...

(1915–1999) * Sculptor

Esther Shimazu Esther Shimazu is an American sculptor who was born in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1957. Her grandparents were immigrant laborers from Japan. She attended the University of Hawaii at Manoa before transferring to the University of Massachusetts in Amhe ...

(born 1957) *

Shirley Ximena Hopper Russell Shirley Ximena Hopper Russell (May 16, 1886 – February 6, 1985), also known as Shirley Marie Russell, was an American artist best known for her paintings of Hawaii and her still lifes of Hawaiian flowers. She was born Shirley Ximena Hopper i ...

(1886–1985) * Tadashi Sato (1954–2005) *

Reuben Tam Reuben Tam (January 17, 1916 – January 3, 1991) was an American landscape painter, educator, poet and graphic artist. Early life and education He was born in Kapa'a on the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i. He earned a BA degree from the Universi ...

(1916–1991) * Ceramicist

Toshiko Takaezu Toshiko Takaezu (June 17, 1922 – March 9, 2011) was an American ceramic artist, painter, sculptor, and educator who was known for her rounded, closed forms that viewed ceramics as a fine art and more than a functional vessel. She is of Japan ...

(1922–2011) *

Masami Teraoka Masami Teraoka (born 1936) is an American contemporary artist. His work includes ''Ukiyo-e''-influenced woodcut prints and paintings in watercolor and oil. He is known for work that merges traditional Edo-style aesthetics with icons of American cul ...

(born 1936) *

Madge Tennent Madge Tennent (June 22, 1889 – February 5, 1972) was a naturalized American artist, born in England, raised in South Africa, and trained in France. She ranks among the most accomplished and globally renowned artists ever to have lived and wor ...

(1889–1972) * Sculptor

Michael Tom Michael Tom (1946–1999) was an American sculptor. Early life Tom was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. Tom was adopted and named as Michael Goon Bing Tom. Tom's sister is Crystella. Education In 1971, Tom received a bachelor of fine a ...

(1946–1999)

References

External links

* {{coord , 21, 18, 31, N, 157, 51, 30, W, type:landmark_region:US-HI, display=title Museums in Honolulu Art museums and galleries in Hawaii 2002 establishments in Hawaii