Model for the Memorial to the Dead of Hiroshima

Model for the Memorial to the Dead of Hiroshima

Noguchi's planned model for the bomb atomic memorial for Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which was rejected for a variety of reasons. Noguchi took inspirations from Japanese traditional ceramics and maternal symbolisms for his cenotaph. He claimed that the shape of his planned cenotaph was based on Japanese "haniwa", prehistoric Japanese pottery figurines. The shape and design of the cenotaph also convey some maternal messages, as the underground chamber underneath the cenotaph represent a womb while the legs of cenotaph is roughly shaped like maternal thighs.

野口　勇 (Noguchi Isamu)

Shōwa 27 (1952)

N.A

unrealized model (black granite and concrete intended)