Yayoi Kusama, Obliteration Room (2002 – present), via Art Observed
Yayoi Kusama returns to New York City this summer at David Zwirner, bringing a new body of paintings, sculptures, and one of her popular, full-room installation pieces, all of which offers a nuanced look at the 86 year-old artist’s prolific output.
Yayoi Kusama, My Life (2014), via Art Observed
Artist Yayoi Kusama is interviewed in The Telegraph this week, in the run-up to the artist’s show of new work at Victoria Miro next month. In the article, the artist discusses her life between Japan and New York, and her reasons for moving to New York in the late 1950’s. “Japan was a very feudalistic society and I felt I wanted to live more freely,” Kusama notes. “So I decided to go to America. I thought lots of people were making beautiful images in America… It was a very interesting society to me, especially the younger generation. Everyone seemed to try really hard to find their own way.” (more…)
Nowness has posted a video piece by Martin Rietti focusing on Yayoi Kusama’s studio work, and her fascination with patterns and motifs such as the polka-dot. “When I was painting I found the same pattern on the ceiling, stairs and windows like they were all over,” Kusama says. (more…)
Yayoi Kusama, INFINITY NETS [FBB] (2013), via Victoria Miro
Victoria Miro Gallery is currently opening its new Mayfair gallery with an exhibition of works by Yayoi Kusama‘s newest series of White Infinity Nets, intricate canvases covered almost entirely with white paint over a wash of black and grey.
A new article in the Guardian is questioning the lack of gender parity in the contemporary art world, noting the lack of any females on the list of top 100 auction sales, and a small percentage of female artists in public collections. “People are saying: ‘I find I can’t even have this conversation about equality in the art world’,” says curator Gemma Rolls-Bentley, “because so many people think it’s already been achieved. Because figures like Tracey Emin have defied the statistics, their rare success misleads people into thinking women get an equal shot.” (more…)
Artnet’s Katherine Markley is reporting on the continued growth of the art market for contemporary female artists, focusing in particular on the work of Yayoi Kusama. Analyzing sales figures for the last several years, Markley points out that Kusama has vastly exceeded the current sales figures for both Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons since 2007, and reframes the question of female artists’ presence in terms of comparison to direct market competitors, in favor of the 100 highest selling works list often cited in news articles and auction reports. (more…)
