Yayoi Kusama
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→ "Creating Infinity" (2023)
→ "Yayoi Kusama: 1945 to Now" (2023)
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→ "I Spend Each Day Embracing Flowers" - David Zwirner Gallery, New York, 2023.
→ "Yayoi Kusama: 1945 to Now" - Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, 2023.
→ "Love is Calling" - PAMM Perez Art Museum, Miami, until February 2024.
→ "Narcissus Garden" - Laumeier Sculpture Park, St. Louis, Missouri, until May 14, 2023.
→ "One with Eternity: Yayoi Kusama in the Hirshhorn Collection" - Hirshhorn Museum, Washington, until July 16, 2023.
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Yayoi Kusama, born on March 22, 1929, in Matsumoto, Japan, is a renowned Japanese contemporary artist best known for her unique use of polka dots, immersive installations, and infinity rooms. Her works span various mediums, including painting, sculpture, performance art, and installation, often exploring themes of psychology, sexuality, and obsession. Kusama’s distinctive style is recognized worldwide, and she has influenced generations of artists with her avant-garde approach and vivid, dream-like creations. Growing up in a conservative family, Kusama began drawing and painting as a form of escape. Her early life was marked by psychological struggles, including hallucinations, which she has described as seeing fields of dots that seemed to spread around her, filling her vision and becoming an integral part of her work. Despite her family's disapproval of her artistic ambitions, she pursued her passion and eventually moved to the United States in 1957, drawn by a fascination with the avant-garde art scene. In New York City during the 1960s, Kusama became part of the burgeoning avant-garde movement. She immersed herself in the world of abstract expressionism and pop art, befriending artists like Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg, and Donald Judd. Her innovative works, featuring endless dots, nets, and mirrored installations, attracted significant attention and set her apart in the art world. Kusama’s "Infinity Net" paintings—a series of large canvases covered in repetitive net-like patterns—gained recognition for their meditative, seemingly infinite quality. She also became known for her provocative public performances and "happenings," such as painting polka dots on nude participants, which explored the nature of the self and the concept of obliteration in art. Her installations often involved mirrors and lights, creating endless reflections that evoke a sense of vastness, which she referred to as "self-obliteration." In the early 1970s, Kusama returned to Japan, where her career initially slowed as she focused on her mental health. Since 1977, she has voluntarily lived in a psychiatric hospital in Tokyo, finding solace and creative inspiration in this environment. Her art continued to evolve and eventually experienced a resurgence in the 1980s and 1990s as she gained international acclaim. Kusama’s later works became even more immersive and participatory, often inviting audiences to enter her meticulously constructed environments. Her "Infinity Mirror Rooms," featuring mirrored walls and lights that create endless reflections, became iconic and have been exhibited in major museums worldwide. In addition to her installations, she continued producing sculptures, paintings, and fashion collaborations. Yayoi Kusama is celebrated as one of the most influential contemporary artists of her time. Her distinctive use of repetition, vivid color, and immersive spaces challenges viewers' perceptions and often evokes themes of self-obliteration and boundless space. Kusama’s work has been exhibited globally, and her influence is evident across various creative fields, including fashion, design, and performance art. Her biography, Infinity Net, provides an intimate look at her life, struggles, and artistic journey, illustrating how her creative expression has always been closely intertwined with her mental health journey. Kusama continues to work actively from her studio near the hospital in Tokyo, creating works that captivate audiences worldwide.