Chess Table

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.