Past Exhibition

I WHO CRY IN THE FLOWERING SEASON
2015
© YAYOI KUSAMA

Title

Yayoi Kusama: Portraying the Figurative

The sketchbooks from Yayoi Kusama’s teenage years contain numerous studies of flora and fauna, accurately portrayed with fine details. While Kusama is widely recognized for her abstract paintings characterized by the repetition of singular motifs, her early emphasis on observation and figurative depictions through sketches formed the foundation of her artistic journey, serving as a means of translating her visions and inner perceptions into figurative forms.

This exhibition focuses on the diverse trajectories of Kusama’s figurative works, spanning from the 1940s to the present day. Most artworks offer detailed and figurative portrayals of familiar motifs, such as animals, plants, and everyday objects. Works include early sketches and traditional Japanese paintings from before her move to the United States, collages that she worked on intensively from the 1970s to the 1990s, as well as prints she has been producing prolifically since 1979.

This exhibition also displays several series of paintings representative of Kusama’s more recent endeavors since 2000. Selected works that feature motifs such as self-portraits and mysterious figures painted freely across canvases of varying sizes are showcased. These works are characterized by figurative images, such as profiles or eyes, repeated to fill the entirety of the canvas, creating an appearance that closely resembles allover abstract art. Highlighting one of Kusama’s most favored themes, the pumpkin motif, we present an installation of the mirror room created in commemoration of the museum’s inauguration along with a separate large-scale sculpture. Moreover, the latest soft sculpture-covered boat, a concept first introduced by Kusama in the 1960s, is presented for its world premiere.

Exhibition Video
Yayoi Kusama: Portraying the Figurative is available down below.

All artworks © YAYOI KUSAMA
Photo by Eikoh Hosoe (01'04"-01'26")
Film by Koichi Wakui
Sound design by SKANK
© 2024 YAYOI KUSAMA FOUNDATION

L: Onions 1948
R: Lunar Eclipse 1989
© YAYOI KUSAMA

L: O Beautiful Assemblage of Young Women's Loves and Romances O Beautiful Day Every Day With All the Beauty of All My Heart For Everyone, EVERY DAY I PRAY FOR LOVE 2021
R: PUMPKINS SCREAMING ABOUT LOVE BEYOND INFINITY 2017
© YAYOI KUSAMA

Dates

Saturday, April 27, 2024 – Sunday, September 1, 2024

Open

Thursdays to Sundays and National Holidays

Closed

Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays

Hours

11:00 - 17:30

Admission

Charges

(including tax)

Admission Charges (including tax)

Adults: JPY 1,100 Children aged 6 - 18: JPY 600

*Children under age 6 are free.
*Group rates are not applicable.

Admission Times

①11:00 - 12:30 (Enter by 11:30)

②12:00 - 13:30 (Enter by 12:30)

③13:00 - 14:30 (Enter by 13:30)

④14:00 - 15:30 (Enter by 14:30)

⑤15:00 - 16:30 (Enter by 15:30)

⑥16:00 - 17:30 (Enter by 16:30)

Yayoi Kusama Museum has no designated waiting area for visitors arriving before the admission time. Please refrain from coming to the museum before your admission time.

All tickets must be purchased in advance online from here. Entry is timed and only valid for a specific 90-minute time slot. Tickets go on sale at 10 am (Japan Time) on the first of each month for entry in the month after next, and are sold through our official website until 30 minutes before the upcoming time slot starts.