Isamu Noguchi Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Japanese, American, 1904-1988
A sculptor, painter, ceramicist and furniture and lighting designer, Isamu Noguchi was one of the most prolific and protean creative forces of the 20th century and a key figure in the development of organic modernism. Noguchi’s sculptures and designs — his chairs and tables as well as his timeless Akari lamp and other lighting fixtures — share a common spirit: one of lyrical abstraction, tempo and flow and harmonious balance.
Noguchi was born in Los Angeles to an American mother and Japanese father, and spent most of his childhood in Japan. He returned to the United States at age 13, went to high school in Indiana and enrolled at Columbia University to study medicine. At the same time, he took night courses in sculpture.
Within three months, Noguchi left college to pursue art full time. Noguchi was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1927 and traveled to Paris to work under Constantin Brancusi. It marked a turning point. Inspired by Brancusi, Noguchi embraced abstraction and began to sculpt in the expressive, rhythmic style that would be the hallmark of his work.
Once back in New York, Noguchi was introduced to design by what would become a lifelong collaboration creating sets for choreographer Martha Graham. His first industrial designs were in Bakelite: the sleek Measured Time kitchen timer created circa 1932, and his famed Zenith Radio Nurse intercom, from 1937.
Ten years later, Herman Miller introduced Noguchi’s now-iconic glass-topped coffee table with an articulated wooden base. His washi paper and bamboo Akari light sculptures, handmade in Japan, debuted in 1951. In the late 1950s, Noguchi designed for Knoll, creating such pieces as his dynamic Cyclone table and rocking stool.
For collectors, Noguchi’s furniture and lighting designs remain his most accessible work — they have the same power and presence that Noguchi brought to his art.
Find vintage Isamu Noguchi floor lamps, table lamps, coffee tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
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Creator: Isamu Noguchi
Measured Time Clock by Isamu Noguchi
By Isamu Noguchi
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
The Hawkeye Measure Time Clock Timer, a masterpiece by Isamu Noguchi, stands as a testament to both form and function. In impeccable working order, this timekeeping gem has undergone...
Category
1930s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Materials
Metal
Isamu Noguchi Hawkeye "Measured Time" Clock and Kitchen Timer
By Isamu Noguchi
Located in San Pedro Garza Garcia, Nuevo Leon
The “Measured Time” clocks have appeared previously on the market without attribution, identified only by the clockface “Hawkeye” label or the Stev...
Category
1930s American Art Nouveau Vintage Isamu Noguchi Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Materials
Metal
Mid-Century Isamu Noguchi Hawkeye Measured Time Clock and Timer
By Isamu Noguchi
Located in BROOKLYN, NY
Noguchi's first mass-produced design, completed circa 1932, predating his design for the "Radio Nurse" baby monitor by about five years. Produced...
Category
1930s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Materials
Metal
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Nelson famously recounted the story of how the Ball Clock came to life in an interview decades after it’s release:
“It was one of the really funny evenings. Noguchi came by, Bucky Fuller came by, and here was Irving, and here was I, and Noguchi - who can’t keep his hands off anything - he saw we were working on clocks and started making doodles. Then Bucky sort of brushed Isamu aside. He said, ‘This is a good way to do a clock’ and made some utterly absurd thing. Everybody was taking a crack at this, pushing each other aside and making scribbles. At some point we left – we were suddenly all tired, and we’d had a little bit too much to drink – and the next morning I came back, and here was this roll of paper, and Irving and I looked at it, and somewhere in this roll, there was a ball clock. I don’t know to this day who cooked it up.”
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Can you tell me more about his clocks?
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Isamu Noguchi table clocks and desk clocks for sale on 1stDibs.
Isamu Noguchi table clocks and desk clocks are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of plastic and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Isamu Noguchi table clocks and desk clocks, although black editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original table clocks and desk clocks by Isamu Noguchi were created in the mid-century modern style in united states during the 1930s. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider table clocks and desk clocks by George Nelson, and Howard Miller. Prices for Isamu Noguchi table clocks and desk clocks can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $1,500 and can go as high as $3,950, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $3,500.
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