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Yayoi Kusama

'I wanted to start a revolution, using art to build the sort of society I myself envisioned.' Yayoi Kusama

 

An eccentric yet brilliant mind, we delve into the genius of Japanese born artist Yayoi Kusama for the latest in the Trailblazer Series. Known best for her bold and psychedelic work, she was one of the first artists to experiment with immersive works at the start of the pop art movement.

 

Dubbing herself the 'Princess of the Polka Dot', her early art sees an exploration of spots as an act of political protest. Beginning on canvas, before posing in front of her art in matching gowns, her work soon spread to mass gatherings where guests were painted in polka print as live art, before scaling up again into her now famous 'Infinity Room' installations.

 

Only now receiving the accolade that her trailblazing thought deserves, Kusama best explains her work in her own words - 'I create environmental art to prove great spirit of inquiry in the diverse human history. It is environmental art that I could devote all my efforts to as a way to seek for truth with all my heart.'

 

Discover the Aje ode to the Princess of the Polka Dot here and now.

Yayoi Kusama's performance art piece 'Self-Obliteration by Dots', 1968. Documented by Hal Reif

‘A polka dot has the form of the sun, which is a symbol of the energy of the whole world and our living life, and also the form of the moon, which is calm. Round, soft, colourful, senseless and unknowing. Polka dots can't stay alone; like the communicative life of people, two or three polka dots become movement...Polka dots are a way to infinity.’

Yayoi Kusama

'Infinity Mirror Room - Phalli's Field', 1965

A still from documentary, 'Kusama: Infinity', by Heather Lenz

‘I have a flood of ideas in my mind. I just follow my vision.’

Yayoi Kusama

'Eternity of Eternal Eternity', the National Museum of Art, Osaka, Japan, 2012.

Yayoi Kusama lying in 'Narcissus Garden', Venice Biennial, 1966.

‘Become one with eternity. Become part of your environment. Take off your clothes. Forget yourself. Make love. Self-destruction is the only way to peace.’

Yayoi Kusama

A still from documentary, 'Kusama: Infinity', by Heather Lenz

'Infinity Mirror Room - Phalli's Field', 1965

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