ARCHITECT HART WOOD SHOWCASED IN NEW BOOK

Authors to present illustrated talk on August 3

HONOLULU— A lavishly illustrated book has been released by University of Hawai‘i Press on the life and work of Hart Wood (1880–1957), from his beginnings in architectural offices in Denver and San Francisco to his arrival in Hawai‘i in 1919 as a partner of C. W. Dickey and eventual solo career in the Islands. HART WOOD: Architectural Regionalism in Hawaii, written by Don Hibbard, Glenn Mason, and Karen Weitze, provides a well-deserved look at this influential architect. Two of the authors, Hibbard and Mason, will give a PowerPoint presentation and discuss their work, as part of Interisland Terminal’s Reed Space HNL events (see: www.interislandterminal.org).

• Date/Time: Tuesday, August 3, 6:30 p.m.
• Place: Waikiki Parc Hotel, 2233 Helumoa Road, meeting room TBA

The talk is free and open to the public with free validated parking for attendees to Reed Space events, which includes the “pop-up bookstore” exhibition. Books will be available for purchase and signing after the presentation.

A leading advocate for the development of a Hawaiian style of architecture, Hart Wood incorporated local building traditions and materials in many of his projects and was the first in Hawai‘i to consciously blend Asian and Western architectural forms in his designs. Enchanted by Hawai‘i’s vivid beauty and its benevolent climate, exotic flora, and cosmopolitan culture, Wood sought to capture the aura of the Islands; and in ensuing years, its underlying essence of simplicity, comfort, and hospitality.

Hart Wood’s magnificent and graceful buildings remain critical to Hawai‘i’s architectural legacy more than fifty years after his death: the First Church of Christ Scientist on Punahou Street, the First Chinese Church on King Street, the S & G Gump Building on Waikīkī’s Kalākaua Avenue, the Honolulu Board of Water Supply Administration Building on Beretania Street, and the Alexander & Baldwin Building on Bishop Street, as well as numerous Wood residences throughout the city.

Don J. Hibbard administered the State of Hawai‘i’s historic preservation program in 1981–2002 and now works as a heritage specialist. He has written several books on Hawai‘i architecture, including The View from Diamond Head and Designing Paradise. Glenn E. Mason, AIA, heads Mason Architects in Honolulu and has published several articles and essays on Hawai‘i’s historic architecture. Karen J. Weitze is an architectural historian living in California.

Published by University of Hawai‘i Press, HART WOOD: Architectural Regionalism in Hawaii is available in hardback and retails for $24.99. Books can be found at local book¬stores, or may be ordered directly from UH Press (phone: 956-8255; email: uhpbooks@hawaii.edu; or online: www.uhpress.hawaii.edu). For more information, including images from the book, contact Carol Abe at 956-8697, or email: abec@hawaii.edu.