The nearly century-old Honolulu Museum of Art in Honolulu, Hawaii, has the largest collection of Asian and Pan-Pacific art in the United States, with an emphasis on Japanese, Chinese, and traditional Hawaiian works. Among its 50,000 pieces are famed ukiyo-e woodblock prints (including Katsushika Hokusai’s The Great Wave off the Coast of Kanagawa), paintings by Francis Bacon and Robert Rauschenberg, delicate Chinese medicine bottles, rare Hawaiian feather capes, a wall of Javanese masks, an exterior sculpture by Emile-Antoine Bourdelle, and one of the most comprehensive textile collections in the country.
It takes at least two hours to comb the grounds, which include six courtyards and more than 30 galleries. If you’re short on time, this map will help you zero in on the galleries of interest.
A museum satellite, Spalding House, has contemporary exhibitions, a sculpture garden, and L’Enfant et les sortilèges, a permanent installation by David Hockney. Also under the HMA’s umbrella is the impressive Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design, once home to well-traveled American heiress Doris Duke.
HMA’s main campus is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Adult admission is $20, plus $10 for special exhibitions. The ticket includes same-day entry to the Spalding House (Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m). FYI: Admission to the HMA is free on the first Wednesday and third Sunday of every month.
900 S. Beretania St., Honolulu, HI; 808-532-8700.