Highlights from Hawaii - Fall 2023
Lots of modernist and mid-century architectural highlights from the latest Honolulu visit - we’ll start with a pet hospital, a Googie event arena, a concert hall & an open air concert venue.
Blue Cross Animal Hospital , 1318 Kapi’olani Blvd. Architect: Vladimir Ossipoff, 1938
This 2-story animal hospital designed by noted modernist architect Vladimir Ossipoff was built all the way back in 1938!
Note the dedication above the blue garage door on Sheridan St.: “To man’s unselfish friend”.
Per modtraveler.net, “it’s one of Hawaii’s earliest examples of modernist architecture and boasts a very streamline moderne look. Ossipoff even considerately included a pet drinking fountain on the building’s exterior.”
Neal S. Blaisdell Center - Concert Hall, Architect: Merril, Simms & Roehrig
I found the info below from modtraveler.net website: “Part Theater, part Convention Center, part Arena; the Neal S. Blaisdell Center (named for the city’s former mayor, 1955-1969) spans an entire city block and was designed by the architectural firm of Merril, Simms & Roehrig, as well as Adrian Wilson & Associates who designed its Arena.
Upon opening in 1964, the Honolulu International Center (HIC) - as it was known prior to its 1976 name change – was recognized as a vital achievement for the city.
The images above show the King Street side Concert Hall portion of the Center – which holds a couple of thousand seats for Symphony, Opera and Theater-goers – has a more refined rectilinear appearance that is softened by elongated arches which flank its main entrance.”
It’s been ages since I stepped foot here - the last time was for high school graduation!
When I visited recently, there was a golf cart prominently centered in front of the entry. I thought about moving it for the photo…
Neal S. Blaisdell Center - Arena, Architect: Adrian Wilson & Associates
The info below is from modtraveler.net website “Its circular Arena (where Elvis performed), at Kapi’olani Blvd. & Ward Ave., has got an amazing “Spaceship Googie” sensibility and can hold around 8,000 seats for concerts and sporting events.”
I believe my parents went to the aforementioned Elvis Concert :-)
Waikiki Shell, 2805 Monsarrat Avenue, Architect: Lewis Parsons Hobart, 1956
Great from all angles and bearing a striking resemblance to the Hollywood Bowl. The venue is located in Kapiolani Park in Waikiki, between the dense high-rises of the neighborhood and the dormant tuff cone volcano, Diamond Head.
I have a memory attending a concert here in the 80’s where the lineup was Air Supply, America & Foreigner.
From a Match 2014 Waikiki magazine article “See the Shell” by Karyl Reynolds:
“The elegant seashell design was the brainchild of famed American architect Lewis Parsons Hobart. Born in 1873, Hobart would play a major role in rebuilding the San Francisco Bay area after the 1906 earthquake.
The building of the Shell began in 1952, and, in 1956, the venue was made available for visitors and residents alike to enjoy twilight concerts accompanied by easy tradewinds.
The Shell opens toward the ocean, a design detail that stands not only as a tribute to the ocean-faring traditions of the Hawaiian people but also as a practical design feature. Tradewinds typically come from the northeast, often bringing rain with them. Because of the direction the Shell faces, performers stay dry.“