Isamu Noguchi on top of Slide Mantra at Isamu Noguchi: What is Sculpture?, Venice Biennale, June 29–September 28, 1986 (Photo: Shigeo Anzai)

Founded by celebrated sculptor Isamu Noguchi, the Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum is revisiting one of the artist’s most daring and debated exhibitions with Light and Stone: Revisiting Noguchi’s 1986 Venice Biennale, on view now through September 13, 2026. The archival exhibition commemorates the fortieth anniversary of Noguchi’s groundbreaking presentation at the 1986 Venice Biennale, where he became the first solo artist to represent the United States in the U.S. Pavilion.

 Henry Geldzahler and Isamu Noguchi in 1986

Curated in 1986 by Henry Geldzahler and commissioned by Alanna Heiss, Noguchi’s original exhibition, What Is Sculpture?, challenged rigid distinctions between fine art, design, architecture, and public space. The exhibition proved controversial at the time, but today it feels remarkably ahead of its era.

Akari 200D and BB3-37S

At the center of the original installation was Slide Mantra, a towering marble spiral slide that transformed sculpture into something both monumental and interactive. The work reflected Noguchi’s lifelong belief that play was an essential human experience rather than a frivolous pastime. Alongside it were models for unrealized playground designs dating back to the 1930s, as well as large-scale stone and steel works that emphasized the artist’s fascination with material, movement, and environment.

Installation View, Isamu Noguchi: What is Sculpture?, Venice Biennale, 1986

One of the exhibition’s most debated inclusions was Noguchi’s iconic Akari light sculptures, delicate illuminated forms made from washi paper and bamboo. Though some critics at the time dismissed them because of their commercial popularity, Noguchi insisted on presenting them alongside his monumental sculpture, rejecting the notion that design and art should exist in separate worlds. Their inclusion ultimately became one of the defining aspects of the exhibition, and 2026 also marks the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Akari series.

Light and Stone revisits this pivotal moment through archival photographs, architectural sketches, a project model for Slide Mantra, and several original Akari light sculptures shown in Venice in 1986. The exhibition offers visitors an opportunity to see how Noguchi blurred the boundaries between sculpture, architecture, craft, and everyday life — ideas that continue to resonate strongly in contemporary art and design today.

Tetrahelix (1986)

Visitors to the museum can also enjoy the surrounding neighborhood of Long Island City in Queens, which is adjacent to Astoria and its famously vibrant Greek food scene. After taking in Noguchi’s luminous sculptures and archival materials, it’s well worth extending the outing with dinner at one of the area’s many excellent Greek restaurants.

The Noguchi Museum is located at 9-01 33rd Road (at Vernon Boulevard) Long Island City, NY 11106. Phone: 718-204-7088 or visit noguchi.org/exhibitions for more information.