P R O F I L E | V L A D I M I R O S S I P O F F
(this page, from top) Outrigger Canoe Club; The iconic IBM Building; IBM Building
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in his approach, Ossipoff argued for
restraint, and for architecture that was
environmentally sensitive, culturally
contextualized and appropriate to the
unique characteristics of the landscape—
its light and microclimates. Inspired by
the interaction of indoor and outdoor
space, Ossipoff's designs are best
understood as responses to these
regional concerns. His work within this
place-sensitive framework exhibits a
cross-cultural style; he fused Japanese
building techniques with the principles
of modern architecture that defined the
Mid-century Modern period. Ossipoff's
use of natural materials, from native
woods to lava rock, was crucial and
reinforced his intent to create architecture
that did not overpower nature, but rather,
seemed to spring from it.
Ossipoff completed a staggering
number of projects, more than 1,000,
including significant private homes
like the Liljestrand House; simple,
culturally considered chapels; airport
terminals and more. The IBM Building,
its latticed façade part of architectural
lore in Honolulu, is a tour de force of
his commercial output. Now occupied
by the Howard Hughes Corporation
and the primary office for Ward Village,
the building is a guiding ideal of the
Mid-century Modern aesthetic, its
honeycomb motif meant to reflect a
computer punch card while keeping the
blazing sun at bay. As modern it is, the
structure is a glaring prompt of Ossipoff's
past. As a young boy in Japan, Ossipoff
and his family would occasionally take
tea at the Imperial Hotel, designed
by the architect to whom he is most
frequently compared, Frank Lloyd Wright.
Given this, one naturally wonders if
Ossipoff channeled this memory when
blueprinting the IBM Building.
In 1998, having spent nearly seven
decades in the Hawaiian Islands,
Vladimir Ossipoff succumbed to old age.
But his vision for Hawai'i was, as it still
is, modern.
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