Shangri La, Hawaii (Doris Duke Photograph Collection, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University)
When I was visiting Doris Duke’s greatest achievement, her former house, Shangri La, now the Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design near Honolulu, I was struck by the fact that the tiles she had bought were installed by workers from India through the British architectural firm, C.G. and F.B. Blomfield, based in New Delhi.
As she supervised construction and design, Doris not only bought glass, tiles, and ceramics from Central and South Asia and the near and middle East but imported craftsmen from those countries to help with the correct installation. Rather than simply acting as a decorator, Doris wanted to be sure her collection was authentic in the way it was displayed.
Her sensitivity to Islamic culture, as foreign to the U.S. public in the 1930’s and 40’s as it is today, ensured that through her will the house would serve splendidly to showcase those cultures and educate through visitors and fellowships.
Queen Liliʻuokalani, 1891. Wikipedia.
A progressive leader, she worked to restore voting rights to her subjects, contrary to the interests of the U.S. businessmen who, through their sugar and pineapple plantations, ruled the islands. They deposed her after less than two years on the throne. She spent eight months on house arrest in her palace and then was forbidden to leave the island, continuing to do what she could to restore Hawaiian culture until her death in 1917. A singer, musician and performer, her best known song is “Aloha Oe,” written in Hawaiian and English.
The example of these two queens may be useful to us as we reign in exile at home. How fortunate it is to have time and leisure to think about the course of our lives. How much time and energy have we frittered away in entertainments, amusements, unprofitable social occasions, meaningless travel, television, streaming, and so forth.
If we treat ourselves as the queens we are, the example of Liliʻuokalani may inspire us, as well as the example of Doris Duke. Doris, too, would have embraced the queen’s motto: “Be steadfast in the seeking of knowledge.”
A worthy goal for all of us.
My husband and toured the Hawaiian islands many years ago when we were young and uninformed. I do remember touring the Queen’s Palace, removing my shoes, and buying a piece of sheet music of her song. The image of her being imprisoned in her own home, on American territory, will always linger in my mind. I don’t remember hearing of Shangri La and the museum, which was obviously so nearby.
When did it become a public museum?