Kusama at Centre Pompidou

When I was at the Kusama retrospective last week at the Centre Pompidou I realized that most people don't know what an amazing and influential artist she is, a true trailblazer in the 1960s and 70s, setting the bar for many contemporary artists of that era.

Yayoi Kusama was born in Japan in 1929 and is an artist that works in many mediums including painting, sculpture, film, collage, and environmental installations. Her indefinable style runs the gamut of different art movements: minimalism, surrealism, pop art, and abstract expressionism. Most of her work is underscored with her lifelong obsession with polka dots and she said, "My life is a dot lost among thousands of other dots". Kusama has had hallucinations since childhood and struggles with mental illness. After living in Tokyo and France, she moved to New York in 1956. She flourished in New York and quickly made a name for herself among New York avant garde artists. She was also political and staged outrageous happenings to protest the Vietnam War, which involved painting dots on herself and walking naked through Central Park. In 1973 she returned to Tokyo feeling mentally unstable and suicidal and has lived in a mental illness facility since with  her studio close by.

The exhibition shows a full range of her works including her films of her happenings and performances, soft sculptures, large paintings, and room installations.

I love the whimsical room installations and the day I was there, both children and adults were staring in wonderment at the mesmerizing lights in one and the captivating polka dots in the other. The brilliant sculptures are simple, soft shapes but resonate a certain mystical power. As playful and whimsical as Kusama's work is, the serious, obsessive nature comes through. My favorite artists are the ones that create a world of their own, a world like no other, and one that you can get lost in. I think that is why I connected with the show so much. Kusama creates a world I have never experienced before. She is often quoted as saying: "If it were not for art, I would have killed myself a long time ago". Here is an artist who is more than obsessed: art is her savior.

Till January 9
Centre Pompidou
Open 11AM to 9PM Wednesday to Monday
http://www.centrepompidou.fr/Pompidou/Manifs.nsf/0/4F8E5815BF637B0CC125782500325246?OpenDocument&sessionM=2.2.1&L=2

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Comments

[Cheryl]

What an interesting and so eclectic exhibit! I wish I could get there to see it. I especially love the room installations and all the colors. Thanks for the great photos and the intro to Kusama! Hope to see you in March!!

[Tomu Tamura]

The beautiful pohots tell me how impressive the exhibits are. I wish I were able to go to Paris, when the retrospective is open. I bear with it, until the exhibition is held at Osaka from 7th January.
http://www.asahi.com/kusama/ (written in Japanese)