Isamu Noguchi: "I am not a designer"

Edited by Monica Obniski and Marin R. Sullivan.
Contributions by Monica Obniski and Marin R. Sullivan and Alexandra Lange and Marci Kwon and Ken Tadashi Oshima and Amy Lyford and Christina Hiromi Hobbs and Holly Gore and Glenn Adamson and Marc Treib and Naoaki Nakamura and Sanae Nakatani and Matt Kirsch and Deborah A. Goldberg and Amy Auscherman.

A major retrospective offers a new perspective on the work of Noguchi, whose remarkable design and artistic legacy encompasses sculpture, lighting, furniture, ceramics, public plazas, and garden design.

As part of its 100th anniversary celebrations in 2026, the High Museum of Art is launching an exhibition and accompanying catalogue, which together explore the extraordinary sixty-year career of influential artist and designer Isamu Noguchi. Next year is also the fiftieth anniversary of Playscapes, a Noguchi-designed playground located just a few blocks from the museum. Though Noguchi claimed he was not a designer, the High Museum approaches his work through the design lens, bringing to light many potently prescient and under-explored aspects of his practice. Noguchi exemplified the interdisciplinary, social-minded approach to the role of artist-designer, and his never-ending search for modes of expression reflected an unusually expansive view that extended across everything from sculpture, furniture, and lighting to landscapes, stage sets, and kitchen timers.

Featuring my essay, “The Playground—a Place for Endless Exploration,” covering the history of Noguchi’s engagement with play, from New York to Honolulu, Atlanta to Sapporo.

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