Noguchi Garden
Isamu Noguchi’s California Scenario is a 1.6 acre sculpture plaza surrounded by office buildings between the Center for the Arts and the 405 freeway in Costa Mesa. Commissioned by the Segerstrom family in 1979 and completed in 1982, Noguchi Garden, as it is called locally, is recognized as one of the country’s preeminent sculpture gardens and the most vital publicly accessible outdoor sculpture oasis in Southern California. Its design symbolizes various geographical characteristics of California, incorporating indigenous plants and materials. A highlight of the garden is Noguchi’s homage to his friend, Henry Segerstrom. “The Spirit of the Lima Bean” is a 12-foot-high sculpture composed of 14 Mannari granite boulders which Noguchi engraved with his initials.
Costa Mesa, Orange County
Photographer: Andrew Schmidt