Yayoi Kusama (1929- )
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Yayoi Kusama was born in Matsumoto, Japan, in 1929. In 1948 Kusama left home and enrolled at the Kyoto Municipal School of Arts and Crafts, where she studied Nihonga painting; a traditional style developed during the Meiji period of Japanese history. During the 1950s she began to develop her trademark style of covering surfaces with hundreds of vibrantly colored polka-dots, or what Kusama called Infinity Nets. Kusama claimed to have taken these images directly from the hallucinations that she had suffered from since childhood. After living in Tokyo and France for a time she moved to the U.S., first living in Seattle, and then in New York City. In New York she embraced the avant-garde art movement and began to host happenings, or large-scale performance art held in noticeable locations such as Central Park or the Brooklyn Bridge.
In 1966 she produced her well-known environmental installation entitled Narcissus Garden, which Kusama first presented at the 33rd Venice Biennale. Over the years Narcissus Garden has been reproduced in venues such as Le Consortium in Dijon (2000) and Jardin de Tuileres (2010). Other Kusama installations include I’m Here, But Nothing and Guidepost to the New Space. Kusama has also authored many books. Among them are a compilation of poems and paintings called 7 (1977), and novels such as Manhattan Suicide Addict (1978), The Hustler’s Grotto of Christopher Street (1983), The Burning of St. Marks Church (1985), Between Heaven and Earth (1988), Aching Chandelier (1989), and Angels in Cape Cod (1990). In fashion, too, Kusama found a niche. In 1968 she founded Kusama Fashion Company Limited, and in 2006, she helped to design a line of Louis Vuitton accessories.
Kusama has also received several commissions for large scale environmental installations. These include: Pumpkin for the Fukuoka Municipal Museum of Art (1994); The Visionary Flowers for the Matsumoto City Museum of Art (2002); Tsumari in Bloom for Matsudai Station (2003); Tulipes de Shangri-La for Euralille in France (2003); Hello, Anyang with Love for Pyeonghwa Park (2007); The Hymn of Life: Tulips for the Beverly Gardens Park in Los Angeles (2007); and The Polka Dot Festival in London (2011). Over her long career Kusama’s artwork has been exhibited throughout the world. She held her first solo exhibition at the Brata Gallery in New York in 1958 and in the 60s would show her work alongside contemporary artists such as Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenberg, and Jasper Johns. Her work has also been displayed in numerous international galleries and museums. These include: the Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art (Japan, 1987); the Center for International Contemporary Arts (New York, 1989); the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (1998); the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo (2004-2005); and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney (2009). Her work is held in permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Phoenix Art Museum, the Tate Modern Museum in London, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo.
In 1966 she produced her well-known environmental installation entitled Narcissus Garden, which Kusama first presented at the 33rd Venice Biennale. Over the years Narcissus Garden has been reproduced in venues such as Le Consortium in Dijon (2000) and Jardin de Tuileres (2010). Other Kusama installations include I’m Here, But Nothing and Guidepost to the New Space. Kusama has also authored many books. Among them are a compilation of poems and paintings called 7 (1977), and novels such as Manhattan Suicide Addict (1978), The Hustler’s Grotto of Christopher Street (1983), The Burning of St. Marks Church (1985), Between Heaven and Earth (1988), Aching Chandelier (1989), and Angels in Cape Cod (1990). In fashion, too, Kusama found a niche. In 1968 she founded Kusama Fashion Company Limited, and in 2006, she helped to design a line of Louis Vuitton accessories.
Kusama has also received several commissions for large scale environmental installations. These include: Pumpkin for the Fukuoka Municipal Museum of Art (1994); The Visionary Flowers for the Matsumoto City Museum of Art (2002); Tsumari in Bloom for Matsudai Station (2003); Tulipes de Shangri-La for Euralille in France (2003); Hello, Anyang with Love for Pyeonghwa Park (2007); The Hymn of Life: Tulips for the Beverly Gardens Park in Los Angeles (2007); and The Polka Dot Festival in London (2011). Over her long career Kusama’s artwork has been exhibited throughout the world. She held her first solo exhibition at the Brata Gallery in New York in 1958 and in the 60s would show her work alongside contemporary artists such as Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenberg, and Jasper Johns. Her work has also been displayed in numerous international galleries and museums. These include: the Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art (Japan, 1987); the Center for International Contemporary Arts (New York, 1989); the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (1998); the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo (2004-2005); and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney (2009). Her work is held in permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Phoenix Art Museum, the Tate Modern Museum in London, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo.