Historic homes in Oahu, Hawaii, offer a slice of history and a sense of place

An exterior view of the Manoa Heritage Center in Honolulu, founded in 1996 by Sam and Mary Cooke in 1996. — Photos: AP

There is a mountain on Oahu named for the Greek myth of Tantalus, for whom satisfaction was always just out of reach. The road up is winding, filled with switchbacks, hanging vines and vistas where, on mild nights, couples linger in cars against the backdrop of Honolulu’s city lights.Hidden amid wild avocado trees and the heart-shaped leaves of houseplants is a long driveway leading to a crystallised snapshot in time: the Liljestrand House, designed by architect Vladimir Ossipoff in 1948 and built for Betty and Howard Liljestrand in 1952 for US$40,000 (RM189,080) at the time.

Credited with adapting mid-century modern for the tropics, Ossipoff designed homes and buildings in Hawaii with certain shared features: Japanese carpentry and expertise, the strategic use of trade winds for cooling (he abhorred air-conditioning), and the merging of outside and inside space.