Architect Shoji Sadao, who played a major role in bringing some of the most famous designs by Buckminster Fuller and Isamu Noguchi into the world, passed away in Tokyo at the age of 92 on November 3.

As one of Fuller's most important collaborators, Sadao applied his mathematical and cartographic expertise for iconic projects like the Dymaxion Airocean World Map and the U.S. pavilion geodesic dome at Expo ’67. Some of the projects he worked on with Noguchi include the Hart Plaza fountain in Detroit and the production of the well-known Akari Light Sculpture. He led the design of the Noguchi Museum in Queens, for which he served as Executive Director from 1989-2003.

In 2006, Sadao authored the book, “Buckminster Fuller and Isamu Noguchi: Best of Friends,” an informal biography of the lasting friendship and shared influences between the two visionaries.

“During his life, Shoji was modest and reserved, keeping his name out of the limelight,” the Buckminster Fuller Institute wrote in an obituary. “Yet we will always remember and celebrate how vital Shoji’s work was to both Buckminster Fuller and Isamu Noguchi and how essential he was to both as a creative visionary and devoted friend.”