Designed by Isamu Noguchi (American, 1904–1988)
Manufactured by Herman Miller Furniture Company (American, founded 1923)
Zeeland, Michigan
Chess Table
INV-2031
Designed by Isamu Noguchi (American, 1904–1988)
Manufactured by Herman Miller Furniture Company (American, founded 1923)
Zeeland, MichiganDesigned 1944; made c. 1949
SurrealismModernismtablefurniture
Date
Designed 1944; made c. 1949
Medium
Ebonized plywood, aluminum, and Lucite
Dimensions
52.7 × 63.5 × 63.5 cm (20 3/4 × 25 × 25 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Through prior bequest of Arthur Rubloff; purchased with funds provided by the Antiquarian Society; Quinn E. Delaney Fund
Isamu Noguchi first designed this sculptural chess table for the 1944 Surrealist exhibition, The Imagery of Chess. The table epitomizes his exploration of Surrealism through its irregular biomorphic shape. It also demonstrates his synthesis of Eastern and Western influences: Noguchi drew from the gestural profiles of Chinese calligraphy for the tabletop form and Japanese joinery techniques for the base’s interlocking legs. The designer George Nelson bought the original table, and a few years later connected Noguchi with the manufacturer Herman Miller, who briefly put the table into commercial production.
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