a love letter to
noguchi
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A love letter toIsamu Noguchi was made for, and in respect to, the material practice and process of traditional. Japanese lantern making, and the ideologies and philosophies of Noguchi’s Akari lamps.In consideration of the interaction of the objects that surround the lamp, the lamp investigates the intersection between its base and the surface it lives on. In the application of my own practice and material sensibilities, the forms shown in are my own embodiment of Noguchi’s philosophy: moments of intersections in translation.
Traditionally the lamps are made with wooden internal structures, however, due to the constraints of the projects prompt, it was required to be made of cardboard. My preliminary prototype was made with cardboard, honoring the prompt through process. In the continuation of the making process, the wooden pannels and structure were made.
The river rock was acquired from Trout Brook, New York, the ancestral land of the Lenape people. A singular drilled hole with a slotted curved wooden dowel acts as the weight for the lamp.
Three rocks with two holes drilled in each, combined with three wooden dowels swelled in place. The weight and orientation allows for a variation and different distribution of weight allowing the lamp shade to be at varying heights.
The Japanese lantern-making process begins with wrapping the form with soaked bamboo strips that are sewn together to create the total length of the frame. The paper is then panelled by layering with Kozo Bark (Mulberry) paper that belongs to the family of Japanese Washi Paper.
Yama Kozo Handaura 16 gm paper is being used in the layering process of this form.
A series of forms and studies hang above the workspace. The final form is presented below.
the process : material and form
