Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
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.
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Aluminum
Early 2000s American Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Aluminum
1940s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Uranium Glass, Cherry
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Brutalist Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Slate, Metal
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Cherry
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Metal
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Metal
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Leather
1950s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Hardwood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Art Deco Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Maple
1970s European Post-Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Metal, Chrome
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Chestnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Ash, Plywood
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Wood, Ash
1940s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Uranium Glass, Cherry
1970s North American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass
Early 2000s German Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Ash
1950s American Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Wood
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Wood
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Walnut
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass, Wood
1960s North American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Glass
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Isamu Noguchi Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Metal