One of the great sculptors of the 20th century, Isamu Noguchi was also an accomplished architect, landscape artist and interior designer. He sought to bring sculptural qualities to the many objects he designed for common use.

As a young man, Noguchi studied medicine at Columbia University, but left to pursue the arts. In 1927, a Guggenheim fellowship took him to Europe and he later went to India, China and Japan to further his creative interests. Unwilling and unable to be pigeonholed, Noguchi created sculptures that ranged from the abstract to the realistic. He used any medium he could get his hands on: stone, metal, wood, clay, bone, or a mixture of any or all.

While you'll notice an uncommon mix of sculpture and function in many Noguchi pieces, this is especially apparent in his "light sculptures" or Akari. Traditional lanterns he saw during a 1951 trip through the Japanese city of Gifu inspired these beautiful paper lamps, and they are still produced today.

We share Noguchi's belief that everything—even common everyday objects—is sculpture, and you'll find that many of our exclusive pieces have an artful quality that's not usually found in furniture.