Sun at Midnight

Sun at Midnight 

真夜中の太陽

Artist
NOGUCHI, Isamu
ノグチ、イサム
Birth Year
1904
Death Year
1988
Date
1989 
Technique, Material, Format
granite 
Dimension
220.5 x 199.0 x 119.0 cm 
Category
Sculpture or Three-dimensional Work by Foreign Artist 
Inventory Number
90-SF-005 

Reddish and black stones alternate to form a circle that is reminiscent of the passing of day and night, light and darkness. Isamu Noguchi was born to the poet Yone Noguchi and Léonie Gilmour, whom Yone had met in the United States, and he spent his life traveling back and forth between the two countries. In addition to sculpture, he was active in many other fields including stage art and design. He was also interested in Buddhism, especially Zen, and gave equal weight to his studies of Western art history and Eastern thought. This sculpture may symbolize the oriental belief that life and death repeat like a wheel that keeps spinning. And, despite the work having a hole at its center, the sculptor’s efforts to convey a sense of volume in that void are also palpable.
(KIMURA Eriko)

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