Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988), “Akari 25N” lamp, Japan, 1960
Steph Simon edition
Mulberry paper from Japan, lacquered steel thread
Gift of Galerie Laffanour/Downtown, 2011
Inv. 2011.70.1
© Les Arts Décoratifs / photo: Jean Tholance
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In 1963, Steph Simon received the exclusive rights to the series Akari (“light”) in Japanese, lights made from paper and metallic thread which Isamu Noguchi began to make in the early 1950s.
The “washi” paper generally handcrafted using mulberry bark, similar to traditional Japanese lanterns and partitions, gives a poetic aspect and diffuses subdued light that the lamp materialises, in this way creating a sculptural piece.