Isamnu Noguchi

I'm leaving for Tokyo in two weeks on a press trip, so I'll be posting a lot of Japan-related posts until then. Perhaps there's no better place to start than with iconic mid-century Japanese-American designer Isamu Noguchi. Aside from being one of the most influential modern furniture designers of his time, he also was a prominent artist, landscape architect, and set designer. But mostly he believed he was a sculptor. In fact one of his most lasting quotes is, "everything is sculpture, any material, any idea without hindrance born into space, I consider sculpture." Even if you don't recognize the name Noguchi or don't think you know his body of work, you will probably recognize some of the following pieces of furniture he designed, all of the below is still in production today.

Isamu Noguchi coffee table, 1948 ($1,299).

tea cup + saucer, 1952 ($118); Noguchi knife, fork + spoon, 1952 ($241).

Cyclone side table, 1953 ($1,008).

prismatic table, 1957 ($631).