ISAMU NOGUCHI (1904-1988) - COLLECTION CHRISTOPHE MAGNAN - Lot 217

ISAMU NOGUCHI (1904-1988) - COLLECTION CHRISTOPHE MAGNAN Akari BB2-45XN, model created around [1978], from the Akari series begun in [1951], our work from the 1st edition, hand-made by the Japanese company Ozeki in Gifu. Table lamp. Washi paper glued to bamboo strands. The base in bamboo, black lacquered metal and cast iron. Marked with a red stamp (Sun and Moon; round and crescent) towards the base of the lampshade. H.70 cm - L.18 cm Provenance : Christophe Magnan Collection. Archives and related works : The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, New York - Identical models reproduced in photographs held in the collections of this institution under nos. 03109, 151328 and 151329. Bibliography : - AKARI Light Sculpture by Isamu Noguchi - Ozeki and Co. trade catalog, Tokyo, circa 1988. An identical model is reproduced on page 11. - Thibaut Varaillon, Christophe Magnan and Philippe Brieallard - Akari: les chemins de la lumière - Catalogue for the exhibition at WA Design Gallery, Paris (June 25 - July 23, 2021), Éditions de la galerie, Paris, 2021. Our work, or an identical model, reproduced on pages 81, 136 (detail) and 137. Christophe Magnan; his encounter with and journey through Isamu Noguchi's Akari as seen by himself I acquired my first Akari in the late 1990s. My frequent trips to the Saint-Ouen flea market had overcome my ignorance, and the discovery of this "magic lantern" created a sense of wonder that has never left me since. I went home sure I'd unearthed another treasure, but it wasn't until nightfall that I discovered the full magic of the Akari: that perfect diffusion of light that keeps in suspense that magical moment that has no name, that tiny second when day and night pass the baton, that furtive moment when yesterday still hesitates to become tomorrow. Since then, I've been lucky enough to acquire many models, first as a collector and then as a gallery owner. And so it was that I went from being a mere admirer of the Akari to a great enthusiast of Isamu Noguchi's work. Like many Europeans, my knowledge of Noguchi's work was limited to his IN50 coffee table and a vague perception of a series of Japanese lanterns brought up to date. This was to forget the diversity and amplitude of the talent of this polymorphous artist: one of the greatest sculptors of the 20th century, landscape artist, architect, draughtsman, ceramist, decorator, designer... His modes of expression seem limitless and always mastered to perfection. When I set up the WA gallery in 2018, my aim was to bring together the works of Japanese, French and American designers, who, beyond time and borders, share the same culture of purity, constitutive of traditional Japanese arts as of the "Modern Movement". Who better than Isamu Noguchi to embody this echo between two shores, this bridge stretched between styles, centuries and continents? Who better than him and his Akari to symbolize the excellence that distinguishes art from craft, the perfect symbiosis between the visionary genius of the artist and the age-old know-how of the Ozeki's "little hands"? Christophe Magnan