Hawaiian Modern exhibit

We finally got ourselves over to the Honolulu Art Academy to see the "Hawaiian Modern" exhibit -- a show of the works of Vladimir Ossipoff. (The exhibit has been running since Nov. 29 and closes tomorrow.)

We enjoyed learning that so many of the prominent buildings of Hawaii -- and Honolulu, in particular -- were designed by him. I was also pleased to see that so many of the featured buildings -- both residential and commercial -- are still in use and for the most part intact. I know I especially enjoyed the photos of the houses and their period interiors.

And it was such a pleasure to see design that was done with the climate in mind. Although, as it was pointed out in the exhibit, it was actually essential to design like that until air conditioning became the norm.

This idea that you can put up the same building in Hawaii as anywhere else in the world is based on an assumption that there will be air conditioning. I fear that the possibility of ever owning a residence here that doesn't require air conditioning is slim to none. It makes our current set-up seem better and better. Yes, we have to live with carpet, but we have a lovely breeze and 80% of the time it is very comfortable. And most of the other 20% it's still pretty good. We have windows on three sides and the trade winds blow right through our unit.

So of course the exhibit has sparked housing-related fantasies, but hey, that was a known risk. If nothing else, the photos of the houses' interiors reminded us of the beauty and utility of benches...hmm...