James Jensen, associate director and chief curator of The Contemporary Museum, is passionate about what he does for a living. He often donates valuable works from his own collection to the museum's permanent collection, as seen in "Nineteen Going on Twenty: Recent Acquisitions From the Collection of The Contemporary Museum," which includes nine of his pieces, including a Robert Rauschenberg print. He has also given works to the Honolulu Academy of Arts.

Jensen left his 15-year position at the Honolulu Academy of Arts (partly as the curator of western art) to join The Contemporary Museum three years after it opened in October 1988. He has a photographic memory, doesn't own a digital camera and is a ruthless art sleuth. He's been a large part of the museum's growth and development. "I find," he says, "that the longer I'm curator, the more shameless I can be."

He was born on July 10, 1949, and was raised on a dairy farm in a small town two hours north of Madison, Wis. He received a journalism scholarship to the University of Wisconsin but changed his major to art history. He wasn't planning to settle in Hawai'i, so being here 30-plus years has surprised even him.

This "preview" exhibit gives us a glimpse of what to expect when the museum celebrates its 20th anniversary next October. With 2,000 members and two locations — one downtown at the First Hawaiian Center and one on Makiki Heights Drive — the museum has big plans. The upper location, with its beautiful grounds and sweeping views of Honolulu, will experience a long-awaited growth spurt in the next few years, including construction of new exhibition space. A two-level gallery will be built on the tennis courts and will display the 3,000 works from the museum's permanent collection in rotation. In the future, there will always be something to see at the museum, even when the main galleries are closed.

Q. Did you ever consider yourself an artist?

A. I took art classes in high school and was fairly good at it. I painted scenery for the school productions. However, I went to college on a journalism scholarship but ditched that really fast. I signed up for an art history course and really enjoyed it. I've always been a visual person. Interestingly enough, the journalism came back around, and I do a lot of writing for this job. When I was a freshman in 1967, we had our first riot, and from then on the University of Wisconsin was a very interesting and exciting place to be. I got involved in campus politics. Wisconsin, Columbia and Berkeley were the most radical schools in terms of anti-war activity. So I got as much of an education out of the classroom as in. I really liked art history and was also working as a curatorial assistant in the state museum in decorative arts and at an art gallery. I did two years of graduate work at the same university in art history and went on to pursue a master's degree in business/art administration.

Q. What brought you to Hawai'i?

A. I wasn't planning on coming to Hawai'i. It never even interested me for a vacation. But at a certain point, there just weren't jobs around that were interesting. I became pro-active and started sending out my resume with a letter to institutions that I had read about and selected in cities that sounded interesting. I remembered reading about the Honolulu Academy of Arts in a book on America's small museums. I don't know why I chose here. I'm not a water person. I'm too fair to be in the sun, and I hate hot weather. Thank God for the trade winds.

Q. What are your favorite media as a collector?

A. Mainly, I collect drawings. They have a more spontaneous and direct feel to me. There are just so many artists doing such beautiful things on paper. I also collect photographs and ceramics. I tend to collect artists who are overlooked or not in fashion. Their prices are more reasonable and affordable.

Q. Which acquisition in this exhibit do you consider the most significant for the permanent collection?

A. Sam Francis's "Black and Red" oil on canvas (1950-1953), bequeathed by Betty Sterling. Any museum would die to have something like this. Many museums have this kind of work, but for a small museum like us to have something that great, that beautiful, that hard to come by, as a bequeathed gift, it's really special. It's a very fine example and one of the most important works in the collection and definitely, this show, from a historical and quality standpoint. It's also the sort of thing that normally I would never think about because it would be out of our range to purchase.

Q. How do you go about selecting works for the museum?

A. I go to galleries, artists' studios and art fairs, as well as spend a lot of time reading magazines and being aware of things. Every once in a while, something comes across my desk that strikes me really strongly. I try to look for emerging artists. You have to keep your ear to the ground and listen. If the press is good, I try to buy something early in their career so we can afford it. We've done that several times and have been very lucky. If there is something I really want, then I have to go out and find the funds. Sometimes people donate funds for us to purchase something. For instance, Junko Mori's forged steel "Propagation Project" (2006) was purchased with funds donated by the family and friends of Dr. Alan Pavel. The vast majority of our collection is from gifts. But as my committee would say, I have a list of far more things than we could ever purchase. It does come down to making some tough choices but also finding the right work available at the right time when you have money. Our focus is 1940 to the present. I spend most of my time, because we don't have an acquisition fund, cultivating gifts, looking for gift opportunities and cultivating collectors.

Q. How would someone donate a work of art to the museum?

A. They could call me. If it is something outside our period (1940 to the present) I will be up front and tell them. Usually, I ask for a photograph and, after getting it through our in-house screening process, present it to the collections committee. These pieces, of course, would all be works I would like to have in the permanent collection.

Q. Can you tell me a little about what's planned for next year's 20th anniversary?

A. We'll begin in October of 2008 and continue for a full year or more. We were hoping the new building would be open by then, but it's not going to happen. We are reviving the Biennial of Hawaii Artists. The 20th anniversary exhibit will include gifts and promised gifts. We have planned two shows with Japanese artists and numerous other programs and exhibits.

Q. Is this exhibit a reflection of your work as curator for the past 16 years?

A. This show reflects my activities as a curator, but it also reflects the real generosity of people in and outside the community. Many things have come from people on the Mainland — some with Hawai'i connections, some not. Since our collection has been mainly built on gifts, it's a tribute to the generosity of people who have given to the museum. And I've just sort of been the fortunate conduit who can go out there and lasso them in.