hand-painted animations bring isamu noguchi’s unrealized playgrounds to life

the five short animated films reinterpret play mountain from 1933, playground equipment from 1940, contoured playground from 1941, united nations playground from 1952, and riverside playground or adele levy memorial playground from 1961 to 1962. throughout these pieces, children swing from bright red climbing structures, drift across softly contoured earthworks, gather inside circular play spaces, and slide through snowy landscapes. some films unfold almost like miniature stories, while others observe noguchi's sculptural forms from shifting viewpoints, presenting not just how these spaces looked, but how they might have been experienced.

while contemporary architectural visualization often chases certainty by producing polished images that resolve every surface and shadow, studio eastend western embraces ambiguity. their films never claim to reconstruct noguchi's proposals faithfully, but rather inhabit them to forge a complementary visual world.

Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event

composer james hatley mirrors this balance in the soundtrack, developing the score alongside the animation so the music evolves with the visuals. environmental ambience gives way to flute-and-drum marches, delicate harp passages, and subtle electronic textures crafted from both vintage instruments and modern digital tools. for directors jack cunningham and nicolas ménard, the project highlights a broader role that animation can play within architectural storytelling.

"we felt strongly that if we made them with a technique that would have been contemporary to his productions, we would have a better chance at creating a complementary visual world."

eastend western

nearly a hundred years after noguchi first conceived these playgrounds, they remain unbuilt. yet for a few fleeting minutes through painted brushstrokes and moving figures, they finally transform into tangible places waiting to be explored at the noguchi museum exhibition running from february 4th to september 13th, 2026.

Source: designboom