Isamu Noguchi. What is Sculpture?
Organized by:
P.S.1, The Institute for Art and Urban Resources, Inc., Long Island City, New York
Commissioner:
Henry Geldzahler
The exhibition presented sculptures by Isamu Noguchi to illustrate the artist's evolving body of work, early and recent. A focal point of the exhibition was the monumental spiral slide of Carrara marble that rested on a bed of wood chips. This was installed in the pavilion's courtyard, which Noguchi renovated especially to create a complete environment for the display of his sculpture. Another relevant work was a tetra-helix sculpture of steel that contrasted with the Akari installation that occupied two of the pavilion's galleries. Noguchi collaborated with the architect Arata Isozaki to design the perfect environment for the Akari installation, which reflects 30 years of the artist's work in mulberry paper light sculptures. A selection of bronze models—representative of the artist's involvement with public sculpture—an installation of granite stones, and a sculpture of Swedish granite completed the exhibition.