"Radio Nurse" and "Guardian Ear" Short Wave Radio Transmitter Designer: Isamu Noguchi (American, 1904–1988)
Manufacturer: Zenith Radio Corporation (American, 1918–1999)

Designed 1937

American Decorative Arts

On view, 3rd floor, Modern and Contemporary Art and Design
Medium

Bakelite, enameled metal, and mechanical elements

Dimensions

Radio Nurse: 8 3/16 × 6 5/8 × 6 3/16 in. (20.796 × 16.828 × 15.716 cm)
Guardian Ear: 6 1/4 × 4 3/16 × 8 3/16 in. (15.875 × 10.636 × 20.796 cm)

Credit Line

John P. Axelrod, B.A. 1968, Fund

Accession Number

2009.210.1a-b

Geography

Manufactured in Chicago, Illinois, Designed in New York, New York

Culture

American

Period

20th century

Classification

Tools and Equipment

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance
Wright Auctions, Chicago, December 8, 2009, lot 221
Bibliography
  • John Stuart Gordon et al., A Modern World: American Design from the Yale University Art Gallery, 1920–1950 (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2011), 306–307, no. 211
  • "Acquisitions," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin: Online Supplement (accessed 2012), 22
Object copyright
Copyright Artist/Estate/Foundation
In Copyright
Additional information

Marks

"Zenith [diagonal, zigzag font] / RADIO [circle containing SOS and the head of a baby] NURSE / DESIGN BY NOGUCHI / PATENT APPLIED FOR / 117 VOLTS - 50/60 CYCLE - 25 WATTS / ZENITH RADIO CORP., CHICAGO" molded into a plastic plaque on the back of the receiver; "GUARDIAN EAR / OF THE / RADIO NURSE / PATENT APPLIED FOR / 117 VOLTS 50/60 CYCLES 25 WATT / ZENITH RADIO CORP., CHICAGO" impressed into metal plaque applied to front of speaker

Technical metadata and APIs

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