About the Artist

Jack Mitchell, Portrait [of Isamu Noguchi] in Long Island City Studio, 1966. Print. The Noguchi Museum Archives, Photography Collection, 04357, © The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, New York / Artists Rights Society.

Isamu Noguchi (1904–1988) was one of the twentieth century's most significant sculptors. His practice was defined by his tireless exploration of material, a commitment to interdisciplinarity, and a belief in sculpture as a vehicle for social change. Noguchi was born in Los Angeles to a white American mother and a Japanese father and spent his childhood in both the United States and Japan. He later established studios in both countries. In 1985, Noguchi opened the Isamu Noguchi Garden Museum, now known as The Noguchi Museum, in a building adjacent to his studio in Long Island City, New York. Noguchi conceived of the Museum as a repository of his work and record of his thinking, but also as a living resource: a shared space for visitors to come together, reflect, and learn. His studio in Mure, Japan became The Isamu Noguchi Garden Museum Japan in 1999.