Yayoi Kusama: The Moving Moment When I Went To The Universe

I recently visited the Yayoi Kusama exhibition at the Victoria Miro gallery, which when I heard was running I  was desperate to go see. Part of the exhibition is a specially created Infinity Room, which if you are remotely on Pinterest or love your art you will have seen similar ones dotted around the world before. Dotted being the correct word as Yayoi Kusama art is famously known for the polka-dots.

This exhibition addresses the themes of cosmic infinity and personal obsession and features new works which show off her powers as an artist as she approaches her ninetieth birthday.

Tickets sold out extremely quickly, so I was excited to get my hands on a pair and to see the Infinity Room in real life and it didn’t disappoint. Each ticket was timed, so in groups of two-three people we got to go inside for approximately a minute, you had to be quick to get some snaps, but it was worth it.

Inside the large mirrored room are hanging paper lanterns covered with polka-dot patterns. The lights consistently change colour and bounce off the reflections in the mirrors. This latest mirrored room is ‘My Heart Is Dancing Into The Universe’ and is in succession of her famous infinity rooms, the very first one premiered back in 1965.

After taking in the amazing Infinity Room, we took a look around the rest of the exhibition. Downstairs are some new works which includes the bronze pumpkin sculptures and an array of paintings in vibrant colours. Pumpkins have been a recurring motif in Kusama’s art since the late 1940’s.

Outside in the garden are the large colourful flowers, again another long-standing feature of Kusama’s art. These bronze sculptures are covered in polka-dots and are in bright vibrant colours. They are designed to be viewed from different angles which encourages you to move around them.

Lastly there is a gallery of paintings upstairs, a showcase of Kusama’s themes and obsessions that characterise her art, with lots more colour and geological patterns.

I loved seeing the exhibition and I was so glad I was able to experience the Infinity Room. Tickets are free but have unfortunately sold out for the run till late December. Here’s hoping they extend it!

For more info visit Victoria Miro.