Exploring Hidden Worlds:
The Noguchi Museum, located in Queens, New York, is a haven in the city dedicated to the life and work of the renowned Japanese-American artist Isamu Noguchi. Established in 1985 by Noguchi himself, the museum is housed in a converted industrial building that features a serene, Japanese-style sculpture garden. The museum offers an immersive experience, showcasing Noguchi's extensive portfolio, which includes sculptures, furniture, and his famous lighting.
The current remarkable exhibition "Worlds Within" presents a comprehensive retrospective of the influential artist Toshiko Takaezu (1922-2011), featuring about 200 works from private and public collections around the country. This exhibition, the largest ever devoted to Takaezu, traces her artistic journey from her early student works to the grand environmental installations of her later years.
Much like Noguchi, Takaezu's work was deeply influenced by her cultural heritage and personal experiences. Her parents' immigration from Okinawa to Hawai'i profoundly shaped her artistic vision, as much as her own relocation in 1965 to New Jersey to pursue the life of a full time artist. The exhibition showcases her evolution as an artist, highlighting her commitment to the unseen: “the dark space you cannot see,” referring to the mysterious interior of her iconic closed ceramic sculptures.
Takaezu explored the interplay of form, sound, and nature throughout her prolific six-decade career. Her closed ceramic forms encapsulate hidden worlds within, while acting on the exterior as round canvas for abstract paintings, mastered thanks to her skillful glazing techniques. These sculptures often incorporate sounds from internal clay rattles, evoking natural imagery such as rustling grasses or breaking waves. Visitors can move the ceramics in their hands and make them chant as they experience the profound philosophical depth of Takaezu’s work.
One of the highlights of the exhibition is Takaezu's "Star Series", a collection of majestic closed forms completed between 1994 and 2001. These pieces, each named after a celestial body, allude to vast dimensions and evoke a sense of being pulled into the universe within.
Definitely a must see! On show until July 28th at the Noguchi Museum
