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18 Aug 2017
Avant-garde artist Yayoi Kusama to open eponymous museum in Tokyo
By Alice Davis
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The Yayoi Kusama Museum is expected to open on 1 October
Photo: Masahiro Tsuchido ©YAYOI KUSAMA
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Yayoi Kusama – the Japanese artist famed for her use of repetitive patterns and bold colours – has announced the opening of her own art museum, in Tokyo, Japan.
The five-storey museum building, designed by architecture firm Kume Sekkei, has already been erected in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, but the purpose of the structure had been kept under wraps.
Two of the storeys will be devoted to exhibiting Kusama’s latest artworks, while one floor will be dedicated to an Infinity Mirrors installation. There will also be archive space, reading room and a gift shop.
“This museum is established by Yayoi Kusama and managed by the general incorporated association, Yayoi Kusama Foundation with the purpose of dissemination and promotion of Kusama’s art throughout the exhibition of her artworks and related materials, to contribute afterwards to the general development of art,” said a museum statement.
“We aim to be the museum where everyone can get familiar with contemporary art; we transmit the massage of world peace and human love, which Kusama has been embodying through her artworks, and hold biannual exhibition with her artwork collection along with some lectures.”
Yayoi Kusama's eminently “instagrammable” works – from huge polka-dot pumpkins to seemingly endless expanses of twinkling lights – could be a starting point for imaginative forms of visitor engagement. The museum will likely feature a number of unique photo opportunities and other ways to engage visitors – and their phones – with art.
Named by The Art Newspaper as the world’s most popular artist in 2014, Kusama may want her visitors to take advantage of their social media networks to infinitely share their experiences – and their selfies.
The Yayoi Kusama Museum opens on 1 October, and its debut exhibition is titled Creation is a Solitary Pursuit, Love is What Brings You Closer to Art. Admission costs ¥1000 (US$9.10, €7.80, £7.00) and scheduled visits last about 90 minutes.
The Japanese artist was born in Nagano Prefecture in 1929. She has long spoken about how art has helped her deal with her mental illnesses.
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