Image: Noguchi Museum, New York
The Noguchi Museum in Long Island City will host an artist talk and screening on August 1 with Nicolas Ménard and Jack Cunningham of Eastend Western, focusing on hand-painted animated films commissioned for 'Noguchi’s New York'. The 3 to 4 pm program is free with museum admission and will take place in the Museum’s Education Studio (Level C), with capacity limited and attendance first-come, first-served.
According to the Museum, the event will be moderated by curator Kate Wiener and will include additional context on Noguchi’s playground proposals and their role in his vision for New York City. The talk centers on a set of animated films made by Eastend Western for the exhibition 'Noguchi’s New York', which opened February 4, 2026 and runs through September 13, 2026 at The Noguchi Museum.
The exhibition looks closely at Isamu Noguchi’s long relationship with New York, the city he first moved to in 1922 and continued to return to throughout his life. The Museum says the show examines how the city’s material, cultural, social and political landscape shaped Noguchi’s work and thinking, and how he in turn sought to transform the city through projects that included communal spaces for exploration and play. The exhibition also notes that these efforts were often thwarted, most notably by NYC Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.
'Noguchi’s New York' brings together more than 50 works, including sculptures, project models, photographs and archival materials. Among the exhibition’s featured elements are the hand-painted animated films by Jack Cunningham and Nicolas Ménard of Eastend Western, which the Museum says bring to life Noguchi’s unrealized playground proposals for New York City. The exhibition page identifies animated films inspired by 'Playground Equipment' and 'Riverside Playground' among the selected works, alongside related sculptures, models and drawings.
The August 1 talk is one of several programs tied to the exhibition. Earlier that day, the Museum will offer a family workshop with Eastend Western from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm, in which participants will view the films and then create a collaborative animation using markers on celluloid. The workshop is recommended for families with children ages 7 and up.
Later summer programming continues beyond August 1. The Museum lists Free First Friday on August 7, with chess games in the garden, art-making in English and Spanish, and music from the DJ collective Discolocas, followed by Community Day on August 8 with free admission, drop-in art-making and public tours focused on 'Noguchi’s New York'. Additional upcoming programs include 'Drawing from a Distance' on August 10 and 'Draw Together' on August 13. The Noguchi Museum is at 9-01 33rd Road at Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City.
