Urban oasis

All the hustle and bustle of downtown Hono­lulu can make anyone cringe.

Parking is a nightmare, and come rush hour there’s the inevitable traffic jam.

Tucked in the midst of it all, though, is a place that many do not know exists.

It’s a space that Peter Rosegg, commissioner for the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, calls an "urban oasis."

And the best part about it is that it’s free.

Located on the first floor of the No. 1 Capitol District Building, the Sculpture Garden is the Hawai‘i State Art Museum’s newest exhibition. It pays tribute to the space’s previous occupant, a swimming pool.

In 1928 the Armed Forces YMCA opened its doors and housed a swimming pool in the center courtyard.

The state took over the building in 2000, and the museum opened in 2002.

The pool presented huge safety and financial liabilities, and ideas were thrown around about what to do with the courtyard. But because the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, guidelines needed to be followed.

"Thoughts came up about filling in the pool," Rosegg said, "but the space wouldn’t have been utilized to its full potential that way."

It was when a plan evolved to bring the whole building into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act that the idea for the garden came about, he said.

Three pieces were commissioned for the sculpture garden, which opened to the public in May. The space also features works created by artists from or with strong ties to Hawaii, including Bumpei Akaji, Sean K.L. Brown, Hon Chew Hee, Jun Kaneko, William Mitchell, Ken Shutt and To­shiko Taka­ezu.

"That Hawaii connection was important when thinking about what art pieces would go in the space, especially the commissioned ones," said Rosegg, who was on the artwork selection committee for the garden. "All the art in the museum belongs to the people of Hawaii, so it needed to reflect them."

Honolulu-born artist Doug Young’s commissioned piece is the focal point of the garden because it keeps the shape and feel of the swimming pool. The work elicits feelings of nostalgia, said Rosegg.

"For those who remember the YMCA pool, Doug Young’s creation is dedicated especially for them," he said.

Sea-colored glass tiles, representing the merging of fresh and ocean waters, cover the bottom of the pool. Visitors walk on the "water" as they explore the rest of the art inside the pool.

Eight copper panels line a safety railing. The images, which represent the cycle of life, were created by Satoru Abe.

"The Sculpture Garden is ADA-accessible, and we wanted to incorporate a piece into the safety railing so it would blend nicely with the rest of the art," Rosegg said.

Abe’s work here has a two-dimensional feel. Since the artist usually creates three-dimensional sculptures, the committee jumped on the opportunity to have him create the distinctive panels.

At the edge of the garden stands the third commissioned piece, a trellis created with colorful photovoltaic panels that shade a portion of the seating area in the courtyard.

Designed by Kauai-based artist Carol Bennett, the 48-foot-long structure absorbs the sun’s energy and stores the electrical power on a grid.

Although it doesn’t collect a lot of energy, the piece is intended to illustrate how creative alternative energy can be, Rosegg said.

The garden offers many spots from which to view the trellis. But most visitors will never see the most impressive view, which according to Scott M. Young, museum visitor services manager, comes at night.

"When the spotlights above the garden shine down on the glass at night, the colors that radiate off it are just beautiful," he said.