4 November 2026 — 5 September 2027

No Ordinary Light: Akari at 75

Marking the 75th anniversary of Akari, this exhibition explores the lasting significance of Isamu Noguchi’s pioneering light sculptures. Noguchi made his first paper-and-bamboo light sculptures during a visit to Gifu in 1951, which led him to reimagine the possibilities of the traditional Japanese chochin lantern. Keeping their handmade, collapsible structure, he gave his new lights inventively shaped shades, electric bulbs and modern wire bases. Over the next three decades he produced more than 200 different models of these glowing forms. He called them Akari, the Japanese word for “light”, which for him suggested both illumination and weightlessness. Yet, as he insisted, “Akari is no ordinary light.” He saw each model as a “luminous sculpture” that “comes to life in how it is shown, in how it is in relation to people’s lives and in relation to the environment in which it is placed.” “No Ordinary Light: Akari at 75” traces the many settings in which Noguchi presented Akari over his career, placing them in dialogue with his sculptures in stone, metal and clay, in contexts ranging from intimate domestic interiors to monumental installations. Displays throughout the exhibition take their cue from key historical presentations, including Akari’s remarkable debut at a tea ceremony at the Eames House in 1951 and their provocative presence in Noguchi’s solo presentation at the 1986 Venice Biennale. Across these presentations Akari emerge as dynamic sculptures brought to life through use, encounter and environment, their meaning renewed in every space they illuminate. Curated by Kate Wiener, Curator, and Matthew Kirsch, Curator and Director of Research.

The Noguchi Museum