A study for Noguchi’s famed Black Sun (1969), the sculpture located in Seattle that launched his partnership with stone carver IZUMI Masatoshi (1938-)　of Mure (Takamatsu, Kagawa prefecture). While employing stone from a different region than the Seattle piece (which uses stone from Brazil), it depicts the same fluid, dynamic energy mass, expressed with the organic curves Noguchi excelled at.

In Buddhism, “void” means “a place not disturbed by anything, where everything can exist.” Noguchi, attracted by this Zen-like image, embarked on his Void series works of varying sizes and media in 1970, soon after opening a studio in Mure. This monumental void, standing over 10m high, was originally intended for display in New York as a symbol of anti-nuclear sentiment. Seeming to flow with power, it also appears sensual depending on the angle of view.

Soft light as of sun and moon itself becomes a sculpture . . . The “Akari” lamp series Noguchi launched after encountering Gifu paper lanterns in Japan in 1951 is considered Noguchi’s lifework. During some 30 years, he produced over 200 variations. This exhibition centers on an installation of 150 “Akari” lamps, around which varied works of each period are arranged along “stroll-type” viewing routes.

Throughout his life, Noguchi nurtured a plan to build a playground. His grand vision of “sculpting the land” had its origins in his 1933 design, Play Mountain. He longed to realize a place where children could play wholeheartedly and experience “encounters with the world.” Noguchi also undertook large-scale “play sculptures.” This work’s vivid color and formal lightness evoke Noguchi’s passion and strong convictions.

Two basalt stones are spaced apart, polyhedrons formed of exquisitely blended straight lines and curves. The markings on their carefully polished, deep brown surfaces recall blade patterns on swords. In his late years, Noguchi undertook numerous stone sculptures in Mure with stone carver IZUMI Masatoshi. Among them, this work emanates dignity and unusual sculptural tension evocative of Noguchi’s harshly uncompromising eye.

A late-period sculpture in the garden of Noguchi’s residence, a relocated Edo-period merchant house called the “Isamu-ya.” Its beautifully expressed form, which changes dramatically with the angle of view, reveals all the elements possessed by stone as a gift of nature’s providence. Seemingly composed of two stones, it is yet carved from one stone block. Under varying light and weather conditions—such as when imparted with fresh color and texture by rain—it transforms entirely in appearance.