Avatar
Artist
Isamu Noguchi
(American, 1904 - 1988)
Date1947; cast 1988
MediumBronze
DimensionsOverall: 78 × 33 × 24 inches (198.12 × 83.82 × 60.96 cm)
Credit LineGift of the Hall Family Foundation
Object numberF99-33/73
Edition/State/ProofAP 2/2
On View
On viewGallery Location
- L12
Collections
Exhibition History2nd Salon International de Galeries
Pilotes Lausanne: artistes et découvreurs de notre temps ‘Galerie Claude
Bernard, Paris’, Musée
Cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Plais de Rumine, Lausanne, June 12-October 2, 1966,
unnumbered.
Sculptures by Isamu Noguchi, Minami Gallery, Tokyo, May 14-June 9, 1973, no cat.
Five Americans: Masters of 20th Century Sculpture, The Pace Gallery, New York, January 11-February 22, 1975, no cat.
Noguchi’s Imaginary Landscapes, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN, April 23-June 18, 1978, Denver Art Museum, October 22-December 3, 1978, Cleveland Museum of Art, January 23-March 4, 1979, Detroit Institute of Arts, April 10-June 10, 1979, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, July 22-September 2, 1979 (another cast), no cat.
Isamu Noguchi: Bronze and Iron Sculpture, The Pace Gallery, New York, May 13-June 11, 1988, no cat.
Dear Heartfelt Friend, Isamu Noguchi, Marugame Genichiro Inokuma Museum, Takamatsu, Japan, November 23-March 14, 1993, no cat.
Sculptures by Isamu Noguchi, Minami Gallery, Tokyo, May 14-June 9, 1973, no cat.
Five Americans: Masters of 20th Century Sculpture, The Pace Gallery, New York, January 11-February 22, 1975, no cat.
Noguchi’s Imaginary Landscapes, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN, April 23-June 18, 1978, Denver Art Museum, October 22-December 3, 1978, Cleveland Museum of Art, January 23-March 4, 1979, Detroit Institute of Arts, April 10-June 10, 1979, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, July 22-September 2, 1979 (another cast), no cat.
Isamu Noguchi: Bronze and Iron Sculpture, The Pace Gallery, New York, May 13-June 11, 1988, no cat.
Dear Heartfelt Friend, Isamu Noguchi, Marugame Genichiro Inokuma Museum, Takamatsu, Japan, November 23-March 14, 1993, no cat.
Avatar is composed of four smooth, interlocking, bronze elements. Its verticality suggests a standing totemic figure, and its title refers to a Hindu deity who takes human form for special purposes on the earthly plane. The abstract, biomorphic forms and mythic content of Avatar were inspired by Surrealism.
Avatar is evidence of Noguchi's interest in Swiss psychologist Carl Gustav Jung's ideas about myths, dreams and archetypes. Archetypes are ancient forms, subjects or themes that recur throughout human history. Archetypal imagery arises from the unconscious mind to influence contemporary life. For Noguchi, an Avatar was an archetypal spiritual guide.
Avatar is evidence of Noguchi's interest in Swiss psychologist Carl Gustav Jung's ideas about myths, dreams and archetypes. Archetypes are ancient forms, subjects or themes that recur throughout human history. Archetypal imagery arises from the unconscious mind to influence contemporary life. For Noguchi, an Avatar was an archetypal spiritual guide.
Isamu
Noguchi Foundation, Long Island City, NY;
With Pace Wildenstein Gallery, New York, NY;
Hall Family Foundation, Kansas City, MO, 1998;
Their gift to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, 1999.
With Pace Wildenstein Gallery, New York, NY;
Hall Family Foundation, Kansas City, MO, 1998;
Their gift to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, 1999.
“2nd Salon International de Galeries Pilotes Lausanne: artistes et découvreurs de notre temps ‘Galerie
Claude
Bernard, Paris’,” (Musée Cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Plais de Rumine, Lausanne, 1966):
206, (repro.).
Diane Botnick and Nancy Grove. The
Sculpture of samu Noguchi, 1924 – 1979 (New York: Garland Publishing, Inc.,
1980), 46, (repro.).
Dore Ashton, Isamu Noguchi: Bronze and Iron Sculpture (New York: Pace Gallery, c1988): no. 7.
Alice Thorson, “Making ‘Ends’ Meet: East meets West in Nelson gallery’s acquisition of sculptures,” The
Kansas City Star. (February 21, 1999), (repro.).
Heather Lustfeldt, “Empowering the Spectator: A Style Spanning Idioms and Ages,” Review (June 1999).
Copyright© The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, New York / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
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