Number 18  

Airport To Museum Of Art

Museo de Arte Costarricense

San Jose, Costa Rica

Roger and I are lucky to live directly across the street from Sabana Park in San Jose.  La Sabana Park, which was once Costa Rica's International airport, has the country's foremost art museum which began operating  from 1940. The Museo de Arte Costarricense, was once its terminal and control tower. and is a Spanish-style structure.  A splendid collection of 19th- and 20th-century Costa Rican art is housed in 12 exhibition halls

The airport was built around 1910, with the first plane arriving in 1912. Regular flights continued until 1958, when the airport was closed and transferred to Alajuela.

The remodeling work to adapt the building to the needs of a museum began in November 1977 and completed in April 1978. Years later, the building was declared of historical and architectural interest. The building consists of ground, first and second levels with access to large roofs (former viewpoints) and a central tower.

Inside, the museum contains over 3,000 items that are housed on a permanent basis, as well as special exhibits and events that fill its galleries.

Golden Hall: Luis Féron Parizot (1901-1998) French sculptor and goldsmith based in Costa Rica, was responsible for the creation of the mural that adorns the walls of the Golden Hall. In an area of ​​1500 square feet, the mural summarizes the history of Costa Rica since pre-Columbian times to the 1940s. In each of its four walls, the Golden Hall accumulates characters, events and details corresponding to different stages in the history of Costa Rica.  And was used by the airport as a Diplomatic Lounge.

 

 Sculpture Garden: Inaugurated in 2003 in order to give the museum an area for the exhibition of sculptures by Costa Rican artists. The interior of the building has a number of showrooms and other areas of great Architectural interest allowing the visiting public, not only enjoy the works of art at the museum, but also the beauty and detail of the building and its gardens.  And give yourself time to wonder thru the gardens for a peaceful break from the hustle of San Jose.

Back side of building