Pumpkin (Red, Yellow))
Yayoi Kusama (b 1929) is a renowned Japanese artist, who is still actively creating. In her early childhood she loved to draw, but her parents didn’t support her interest in art. Later they did allow her to study art. In the late 1950s she moved to New York and she had her first exhibition in the big city in 1959. As a Japanese female artist she had to prove herself a lot in the art world, where the white male artist was dominating at the time. Actually it can be said that Kusama inspired many of her fellow artists at the time, including Andy Warhol. Alas Kusama’s artworks didn’t receive much praise unlike the male artists, who were copying her. Kusama was a true innovator in the 1960s as she was one of the first, who did performances, for example she protested against the Vietnam war using art. Kusama can be seen as a princess of big colourful polka dots in art because the polka dots are a constant motif in her art. In her own words, the planet Earth is just a polka dot among million stars in the cosmos and polka dots are in her view a way to infinity. The topic of infinity began already in her childhood, when she had a vision of flowers, who were talking to her. The heads of the flowers looked like polka dots and there were so many of them that it was as if they carried her to infinity. Hence painting and using polka dots in paintings, on clothes, sculptures etc is her way to be part of the bigger universe and infinity. For Kusama, pumpkins are like Campbell soup cans were for Andy Warhol, everyday objects to depict in art.
Yayoi Kusama (s 1929) on tunnustatud Jaapani kunstnik, kes ikka aktiivselt loominguga tegeleb. Juba varases nooruses armastas ta joonistada, kuid tema vanemad ei toetanud tema kunstihuvi. Lõpuks lubasid nad tal siiski kunsti õppida. 1950. aastate lõpus kolis Kusama New Yorki ning tema esimene näitus suurlinnas toimus 1959. aastal. Jaapani naiskunstnikuna pidi Kusama end palju tõestama kunstimaailmas, kus domineeris valge meeskunstnik. Tegelikult võib ka öelda, et Kusama inspireeris paljusid enda kaasaegseid kunstnikke, sh Andy Warholi. Paraku ei leidnud Kusama teosed nii head vastuvõttu kui teda jäljendanud meeskunstnike oma. Kusama oli 1960. aastatel tõeline innovaator, sest ta on üks esimesi, kes lõi performanseid, näiteks avaldas ta kunsti kaudu meelt Vietnami sõja vastu. Kusamat võib kunstis pidada suurte värviliste täppide printsessiks, sest täpid on üks tema loomingu läbivaid motiive. Kunstniku enda sõnul on planeet Maa üks täpp miljonite tähtede seas kosmoses ja täpid on tee lõpmatusse. Lõpmatuse teema algas kunstniku jaoks juba tema lapsepõlves, kus tal oli nägemus lilledest, kes temaga rääkisid, lillede pead olid justkui täpid ja neid oli nii palju, et need haarasid ta justkui lõpmatusse. Seega täppide maalimine ja kasutamine maalidel, riietel, skulptuuridel jne on kunstniku jaoks viis olla osa suuremast universumist ja lõpmatusest. Kusamale on kõrvitsad samad nagu Andy Warholile Campbelli supipurgid, igapäevased objektid, mida kunstis kujutada.
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