Akari Light Sculptures Illuminate

Isamu Noguchi (1904–1988) was one of the 20th century’s most important and critically acclaimed sculptors. Through a lifetime of artistic experimentation, he created sculptures, gardens, furniture and lighting designs, ceramics, architecture, landscapes and set designs. His work was at once subtle and bold, traditional and modern. Noguchi’s Akari Light Sculptures are considered icons of modern design. Created by Noguchi beginning in 1951 and handmade for a half century by the original manufacturer in Gifu, Japan, the paper lanterns are a harmonious blend of Japanese handcraft and modernist form. A late March auction at Wright in Chicago, featuring more than 50 lots of early and rare examples, realized $646,721. Noguchi called his works Akari, a term meaning light as illumination, but also implying the idea of weightlessness. With the warm glow of light cast through handmade washi paper on a bamboo frame, Noguchi utilized traditional materials to bring modern design to the home. Like the beauty of falling leaves and the cherry blossom, Noguchi wrote, Akari are “poetic, ephemeral and tentative.”

 

 

Sculptural Chandelier is a Work of Art

Giacometti chandelier lights up auction. In the 1960s, painter John Craxton saw an interesting-looking bronze chandelier at an antiques store in London. Its six arms were paired like long, straight branches with spiked ends, and a hollow sphere with large, round cutouts dangled underneath. Craxton immediately recognized it as a piece commissioned in the 1940s by art collector Peter Watson, Craxton’s patron early in his career. The chandelier was the work of sculptor Alberto Giacometti, known for his cast metal sculptures of long, thin, exaggerated human forms. Like many 20th-century designers, Giacometti made furniture and decorative arts as well as fine art. Craxton bought the chandelier for £250, equal to about $700 in U.S. dollars, which would be worth a little over $7,000 today. That same chandelier sold at a recent Christie’s auction in London for £2,922,000 (including buyer’s premium)—about $3.5 million!

Design Trends for Collectors

Dear Lee,

One of the biggest challenges for collectors — other than using restraint at flea markets and antiques markets now that they have started up again! — is how to display your newly purchased treasures. Be careful to preserve your collections and keep the items safe. Be aware, too, of shifting design trends to keep your house from looking “stuffy.”

Displaying your collections can be tricky. Safety, of course, is vital. I had a friend who collected green and pink Depression glassware. He had hundreds of dishes, glasses and serving pieces. He displayed all the glassware in a cabinet with glass shelves in his living room. You guessed it: One day, he heard a tremendous crash. The top glass shelf broke under the weight of too many pieces, and he lost at least three-fourths of his collection. Some insurance policies only cover part of the damage, if that. So, rule No. 1 is to be mindful of the safety of display cabinets. To this day, I don’t trust glass shelves.

Here are some other tips:

1. Don’t put colored prints, game boards or anything printed on paper by a sunny window or it will fade. Old printing from the 1950s frequently turns blue from sun exposure. You can put a film on your window to block the UV rays to help avoid some of the damage.
2. Interior design is moving away from minimalism and toward cozy, soft colors, knick-knacks and sculptural furniture. Natural woods are also coming back. Be careful — if your wood dining room table is set near a window, the end closest to it can be “bleached” lighter from the sun.  To keep the color uniform, occasionally turn the table so a different side faces the sunny window.
3. Adding layers of interest in rooms is popular again. That could involve an accent wall with geometric-patterned wallpaper (yes, wallpaper is back!) and contrasting decoration on tables and ledges, including interesting vases. Never put a vase that will hold water on a pile of books, despite what you see in the current decorating magazines. Water can leak from vases, especially vintage ones, and damage the books.
4. Wood floors still beat out carpet in most home magazines, which means area rugs are practical and can add to a room’s cozy feel. If you are using a large rug in a room, make sure all your furniture is on it — not half on or half off. This prevents trip hazards and ensures a table or chair’s stability.
5. If you have favorite artwork, here is one of my favorite decorating tips: Don’t worry about putting your picture in the center of your sofa wall. Put it where it looks good, considering surrounding tables, chairs and lamps. Be sure large pictures — and smaller art hung in groups — are at eye level.
6. Lamps aren’t just practical, they are decorative. In 2022, gleaming metallics and space-age shapes are popular. Don’t put the lamp where it can be bumped and knocked off the table. Put it where the light is needed.
7. Don’t worry about using too much color. It used to be you had a blue-and-white living room. Now it can be the color of the rainbow.
8. Most rooms now have white wood blinds or shades. If you do choose drapes, know that the days of curtains pooled on the floor are over. That was popular in the 1950s and again in the 1980s. Now they should just reach the floor.

I love that color is back in home decoration again. It is a perfect backdrop for any eclectic collection.

 

 

 

Scandinavian Ceramic Artists’ Marks

Modern art pottery and tableware have been made by several Scandinavian factories. The most well-known companies are Bing & Grøndahl and Royal Copenhagen in Denmark and Gustavsberg and Rorstrand in Sweden. Here are marks of some artists and throwers who worked at Scandinavian potteries in the 20th century. A thrower is the person who shapes […]

7 Websites To Enjoy the Innovative World of Architecture, Art and Design

Shake off stress and remaining cobwebs of winter by enjoying a burgeoning number of educational programs, lectures and informative internet programs with the nation’s top designers, jewelry artists, architects, museum curators and artists. We’ve selected 7 of our favorite design virtual programs.

Dezeen is an international architecture and design magazine. In addition to links to articles on design and trends on dezeen.com, you will also find links to a series of lectures by respected artists, designers and architects. The 77-day “Virtual Design Festival” (VDF) is better than any trip abroad.

One of the leading design galleries in the world, friedmanbenda.com, is hosting an online lecture series “Design in Dialogue” with many great designers, museum curators and leading voices of the design world. The series is hosted by curator and historian Glenn Adamson. Conversations are held on Zoom for 45 minutes, plus 15-minute participatory question-and-answer sessions beginning at 11 a.m. EST, three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Travel virtually to New York City’s “museum mile” through cooperhewitt.org, part of the Smithsonian Institution. Cooper Hewitt, in the landmark Carnegie Mansion, is America’s design museum. The website allows access to the museum’s exhibitions, education programs, master’s program, publications and online resources. It has an interesting “object of the week” on its website. Be on the lookout for their reopening to see the amazing Willy Smith exhibition.

Google Arts & Culture app, has direct links to 2,000 museums from 80 countries. If you’ve dreamed about going somewhere, just open this “door.”

Enjoy a lecture about Italian Radical Design from the Houston Museum of Arts hosted by R & Company, featuring Cindi Strauss, curator, and James Zematis discussing the exhibition and the generous donation of Dennis Freedman.

The Jewelry Library, jewelrylibrary.com, is a great website that is curated by jewelry people for jewelry people. It features rotating collections and allows visitors to read about unique artists and page through books on jewelry.

The Brooklyn Museum, brooklynmuseum.org,  has a series of lectures, “Courageous Conversations,” on various exhibitions at the museums, as well as interesting subjects. Its experts also host virtual tours every Sunday on Tumblr.

How to Buy or Sell — Design

Collecting “design”— furniture, lighting, glass, and ceramics from the 20th and 21st centuries — has become very popular in the last few years. Many national commercials, television shows, and movies are using these types of furnishings in their sets which has increased the awareness of this period and has also significantly increased their desirability. Important […]