Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts

The Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts is a public cultural agency created by the Hawaii State Legislature in 1965. Its purpose is to promote, perpetuate, preserve, and encourage culture, the arts, history, and the humanities as central elements of life in Hawaiʻi. The foundation also enabled the state to participate in federal cultural grant programs, including support associated with the National Endowment for the Arts. Rather than operating as a conventional commercial brand, the foundation functions as a statewide cultural infrastructure organization. Its work has included administering public art policy, supporting artists and arts organizations, encouraging arts education, maintaining public collections, and helping make artistic and cultural activity accessible across Hawaiʻi. Its programs reflect the state's distinctive multicultural and Indigenous cultural context, while also supporting a broad range of visual, performing, literary, and community-based arts. One of the foundation's most consequential responsibilities arose from the 1967 Art in State Buildings Law. The statute required one percent of the construction cost of new state buildings to be set aside for the acquisition of art. Hawaiʻi became the first U.S. state to establish a Percent for Art law, creating a long-term mechanism for placing and preserving artworks in public facilities. In 1989, the legislation was expanded through the creation of the Works of Art Special Fund, a permanent fund for art purchases administered by the foundation. The foundation has also played a major role in arts education. In 1970, it joined with the Hawaiʻi Department of Education to establish the Artists in the Schools Program. The initiative created a statewide partnership in which professional artists work with schools and students, making Hawaiʻi the first U.S. state to establish such a statewide artist-and-school partnership. This model positioned practicing artists as contributors to classroom learning and cultural development rather than limiting arts education to specialist institutions. In the fall of 2002, the Hawaiʻi State Art Museum opened in the No. 1 Capitol District Building at 250 South Hotel Street in Honolulu, where the foundation's offices are also located. The museum provided a public venue for presenting works connected with Hawaiʻi and complemented the foundation's broader responsibilities in public art and cultural programming. The foundation's identity is therefore defined by public stewardship rather than consumer products or commercial positioning. Its continuing relevance lies in connecting state government, artists, schools, cultural organizations, public buildings, and residents. Through legislation-based programs and institutional partnerships, it has helped establish culture and the arts as an enduring component of Hawaiʻi's public life.

The Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts was established by the Hawaii State Legislature in 1965. Its statutory mission was to promote, perpetuate, preserve, and encourage culture, the arts, history, and the humanities as essential parts of the quality of life in Hawaiʻi. The foundation also gave Hawaiʻi an institutional channel for receiving and administering federal arts support, including grants associated with the National Endowment for the Arts. A major early development came in 1967, when the legislature enacted the Art in State Buildings Law. The foundation was assigned responsibility for administering the measure, which required one percent of the construction cost of new state buildings to be reserved for the purchase of art. Hawaiʻi thereby became the first U.S. state to adopt a Percent for Art law. The policy established a framework for integrating original artworks into public facilities and for building a state-supported public art collection. In 1970, the foundation and the Hawaiʻi Department of Education jointly created the Artists in the Schools Program. The statewide partnership brought professional artists into schools and made direct engagement with working artists part of public education. Hawaiʻi was the first state to establish a statewide partnership of this type, giving the program significance both within the state and in the wider history of arts education policy. The public art framework was expanded in 1989. Amendments to the Art for State Buildings Law established the Works of Art Special Fund, a permanent fund used for the purchase of art and managed by the foundation. This created a more durable financial and administrative structure for acquiring works and supporting the state's public art responsibilities beyond individual construction projects. The foundation's institutional presence expanded further in the fall of 2002 with the opening of the Hawaiʻi State Art Museum in the No. 1 Capitol District Building at 250 South Hotel Street in Honolulu. The building also houses the foundation's offices. The museum functions as a public venue for art associated with Hawaiʻi and complements the foundation's work in public collections, exhibitions, and cultural access. Across these stages, the foundation developed from a grant-enabling state institution into a broad cultural steward. Its responsibilities have encompassed public art, arts education, cultural preservation, artistic presentation, and support for the humanities and history. The available historical record emphasizes legislation and institutional programs rather than commercial expansion: the foundation's importance comes from its role in creating public mechanisms through which artists, schools, state agencies, museums, and communities can participate in Hawaiʻi's cultural life.

• 2002

  Hawaiʻi State Art Museum opened

  [3]Foundation establisheden.wikipedia.org

  The Hawaiʻi State Art Museum opened in the No. 1 Capitol District Building at 250 South Hotel Street in Honolulu, alongside the foundation's offices.

• 1989

  Works of Art Special Fund created

  [3]Foundation establisheden.wikipedia.org

  The Art for State Buildings Law was expanded to establish a permanent fund for purchasing art under foundation administration.

• 1970

  Artists in the Schools Program established

  [3]Foundation establisheden.wikipedia.org

  The foundation and Hawaiʻi Department of Education created a statewide partnership bringing professional artists into schools.

• 1967

  Hawaiʻi adopts the first state Percent for Art law

  [3]Foundation establisheden.wikipedia.org

  The Art in State Buildings Law required one percent of the construction cost of new state buildings to be allocated for art purchases, with the foundation administering the program.

• 1965

  Foundation established

  [3]Foundation establisheden.wikipedia.org

  The Hawaii State Legislature established the foundation to promote, preserve, and encourage culture, the arts, history, and the humanities in Hawaiʻi.

Public cultural funding and stewardship organization supporting Hawaiʻi's arts, culture, history, humanities, arts education, and public art.

• Public art · 1967

  Art in Public Places Program

  The foundation's public art activity implements Hawaiʻi's Art in State Buildings policy by supporting the acquisition and placement of artworks in state facilities. The program connects public construction with cultural investment and contributes to a statewide collection of art encountered in government buildings and other public settings.

• Arts education · 1970

  Artists in the Schools Program

  Established jointly with the Hawaiʻi Department of Education, this program places professional artists in schools and creates direct learning opportunities through artistic practice. Its statewide structure made Hawaiʻi an early leader in formal partnerships between public education and working artists.

• Art acquisition fund · 1989

  Works of Art Special Fund

  Created through the 1989 expansion of the Art for State Buildings Law, the Works of Art Special Fund provides a permanent mechanism for purchasing art. The foundation manages the fund as part of its public collection and public art responsibilities.

• Museum · 2002

  Hawaiʻi State Art Museum

  Opened in 2002 in Honolulu's No. 1 Capitol District Building, the Hawaiʻi State Art Museum provides a public exhibition venue connected with the foundation's cultural mission. The museum and foundation offices share the building at 250 South Hotel Street.

• 1970Artists in the Schools Program

  Hawaii

  The foundation partnered with the Hawaiʻi Department of Education to bring professional artists into schools through a statewide arts-learning program.

  Outcome. The initiative made Hawaiʻi the first U.S. state to establish a statewide partnership between schools and professional artists.

  Source
• 1967Art in State Buildings

  Hawaii

  The foundation administered Hawaiʻi's Percent for Art policy, reserving one percent of the construction cost of new state buildings for art purchases.

  Outcome. Hawaiʻi became the first U.S. state with a Percent for Art law, establishing a lasting public-art acquisition framework.

  Source

• 2002

  Open the Hawaiʻi State Art MuseumOther

  Background

  The foundation sought a dedicated public venue for presenting art connected with Hawaiʻi.

  Action taken

  The Hawaiʻi State Art Museum opened in the No. 1 Capitol District Building in Honolulu.

  Aftermath

  The museum became a public-facing complement to the foundation's administrative, collection, and public-art work.

  Source

• 1989

  Establish the Works of Art Special FundStrategy

  Background

  The state expanded its Art for State Buildings framework to provide a permanent mechanism for acquiring art.

  Action taken

  The foundation began managing the Works of Art Special Fund as a permanent art-purchase resource.

  Aftermath

  The foundation gained a durable funding structure for art acquisition beyond individual building projects.

  Source

• 1967

  Administer the Art in State Buildings LawStrategy

  Background

  The legislature created a statutory requirement linking public construction spending with art acquisition.

  Action taken

  The foundation took responsibility for administering the one-percent allocation for art in new state buildings.

  Aftermath

  Hawaiʻi established the first state Percent for Art law in the United States.

  Source

1. 1Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Artsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts official websitesfca.hawaii.gov
3. 3Foundation establisheden.wikipedia.org