Yayoi Kusama

By: Alexandra de la Campa

 Background:
- She is a contemporary
Japanese artist
- Her art ranges from
sculptures and installation
art
- Went to: (1)
Kyoto City University of Ar
ts
, (2)
Kyoto City Dohda Senior Hig
h School Of Art
s
- While some of her work has
a name, some pieces don’t
and remain untitled Obliteration Room // ex. of contemporary art
More about Kusama
- She suffers from OCD
- She checked herself into a mental
hospital in 1977
- After checked herself in for her
own safety but still wanted to
enjoy making art
- She still continues to stay in the
mental hospital and she makes art
today
- Art was a way to express her fears,
battle them, and overcome them
Kusma & contemporary art:
- Kusama had a so-called
“dots obsession” and
she used large objects
to make art and add
polka dots to them
- She had a exhibit
dedicated to her pieces
with polka dots All the Eternal Love I Have for the Pumpkins Untitled // ex: of contemporary art
- The top left piece’s
illusion was created
with mirrors facing
each other
- as well as another
piece of her’s

Untitled // ex. of contemporary art

Kusama & installation art
- Installation art → 3-D pieces of art
that are meant to distort the
perception of space and the space in
which the piece in is a major factor
too
- How she creates installation art:
- Objects that you don’t typically use in art
are used to create installation art
- The materials used in this form of art can
include plastic, and in this piece
specifically mirrors and lights
- This piece is also an example of op
art due to the illusion of infamous
colorful dots created by mirrors
Infinity Room // ex. of installation art
facing each other
Kusama & sculptures:
- She has a gallery called
“Flowers that Bloom at
Midnight” which are
sculptures of very
colorful and almost
abstract flowers
- Some of the flowers are
on its side but each one
is composed of all
different kinds of
colors
 Visionary Flower Flowers (1985)

Flowers (1996) Flowers A

Flowers 2
Why polka dots of all things?

- She used polka dots in her art

because of hallucinations she
had in high school
- She found the dots to be very
unsettling and scary
- She believed that “the only way
out is through”
- She was also terrified of floral
patterns that had dots in them
because to her it felt as though
she was being obliterated
- All of this artwork
is under the title
of Mushrooms, each
piece does not have
a specific name
 Sea
No. f Air Mail
No Green No. I

Infinity Nets Yellow N0. C.A.9

 Waves on the Hudson River

Dots Infinity NOWH

Petals

Waves
Resources:
- https://theartgorgeous.com/why-yayoi-kusamas-mental-illness-was-crucial-for
-her-art-career/#:~:text=Kusama%20famously%20checked%20herself%20int
o,across%20the%20street%20every%20day.&text=Another%20significative%
20piece%20is%20%E2%80%9Csoft,several%20representations%20of%20m
ale%20penises
.