Japanese contemporary artist Yayoi Kusama was born in 1929 in Matsumoto, Nagano Born to a family that oversaw plant nurseries in rural Japan, Kusama showed a proclivity for art from a young age Convincing her parents to let her pursue painting further, she went on to study a Japanese style of painting called Nihonga in Kyoto Inspired by Georgia O’ Keefe’s writing, she then decided to move to New York in 1958 to be part of the vibrant art culture in the city

The artist was first inspired to create her signature paintings filled with dots after an episode she calls ‘depersonalisation’ As a young girl, she visited a field of flowers to sketch them and experienced the first of many hallucinations where the flowers began speaking to her and seemed like a sea of dots She would then draw and paint dots in several of her artworks to combat these episodes One of her best known series of works are the ‘Infinity Mirror Rooms’ that are mirrored rooms filled with LED lights that create infinite dots that one can immerse themselves in The pumpkin is also a recurring motif in her art appearing in several paintings and sculptures Most of her art takes a look into the vibrant mind of the artist and her intrusive thoughts, immersing you into her world of repetitive patterns

With her impressive work with environmental sculptures, large scale paintings, soft sculpture and light installations, she quickly catapulted to fame in the 1960s Kusama was also one of the key artists to helm both Pop Art and minimalism, being cited by Andy Warhol, Joseph Cornell and Claes Oldenburg as a major influence “Infinity Nets’, one of her most famed series, was also exhibited during this time The paintings, inspired by the sea, consist of impasto loops and dots that create a surreal effect In the late 60s she staged Happenings such as anti-war protests, fashion shows and body painting festivals