#kusama infinity

[gulposh]

Kusama:Infinity (2018)

[lovely-libra-moon]

Me and my iPhone looking inside a cool interactive art installation at the Yayoi Kusama Infinity Mirrors exhibit. 💕

[osugna]

The approach is perhaps a little tame for an artist whose creations are so spiked with wildness, but it’s effective.

7.3/10

[gomissmollygo]

Narcissus Garden, first presented in 1966 by Yayoi Kusama.

[watchingalotofmovies]

Kusama: Infinity

Kusama: Infinity    [trailer]

Artist Yayoi Kusama and experts discuss her life and work, from her modest beginnings in Japan to becoming an internationally renowned artist.

An interesting portrait of a fascinating artist. I have to admit that until recently I was not familiar with her work. Which is insofar surprising because I tend to be attracted to strong colours.

The time span covered is remarkable. The doc makes it clear how other (male) artists profited from her work.

It is noteworthy how unhappy (and depressed) she looks in all the old pictures, even when with her artwork.

[cinemasentries]

Kusama: Infinity DVD Review: Connecting the Dots in a Great Artist's Life                            As fascinating as Yayoi Kusama's biography is, what truly enthralls is her art. 

[artsandentertainmentjournal-blog]

KUSAMA — INFINITY: THE RISE OF YAYOI KUSAMA

Layered with themes of artistic ambition, family disapproval, and cultural rejection, Kusama — Infinity argues that the top-selling female artist in the world, Yayoi Kusama, remains underappreciated and her hardships are widely misunderstood.

Known for her mirrored Infinity Rooms exhibits and colorful polka-dot-pumpkin-themed designs, Kusama’s work has pushed boundaries that isolated her from her artistic and cultural spheres. The Magnolia Pictures documentary depicts Kusama’s overcoming of odds that prevented her from being seriously considered an artist — growing up in Japan during World War II, family discouragement, the stigma of mental illness in Japanese culture, and sexism and racism in the art industry.

In response to the film, Helen Yu Ko, a Japanese-American who works at a creative tech startup in San Francisco, commented on the cultural struggles depicted in the film. “I can’t say I understand the degree of cultural backlash Kusama faced. Especially during the 1950s, Japanese culture was less accepting of creative occupations. I’ve struggled to convince my own family that a profession in the creative industry is worthwhile; I can’t imagine the mental deterioration that cultural opposition caused.”

As a mother of a six year old, Ko said, “I want my daughter to understand the cultural and racial division that existed and continues to exist, because in the same way that Yayoi persisted through cultural barriers. The story spotlights Kusama’s radically successful career and how art can be a method of healing; it is necessary to express yourself despite social perceptions of your gender, race, sexuality, or mental state.”

Similarly, Nancy Jeon, a Korean-American film professor at the School of Visual Arts gave insight on her perception of the film and Asian-Americans in the creative industry; “She was rejected in Japan because Asian culture at the time largely disapproved of artistic expression, let alone an entire career as a creative.”

Jeon continued on how Kusama was manipulated by those she considered friends and colleagues. “White male artists took her ideas, labeling their adoption of her work as ‘inspiration’ when they were really just passing off her work as theirs.”

The artists Jeon refers to are Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg, and Damien Hirst, who are mentioned in the film. With the “adoption” of Kusama’s four wall-exhibitions, soft sculptures, and polka-dot motif, these white male artists rose to fame while Kusama’s sense of paranoia perpetuated.

Since checking herself into a psychiatric hospital in Tokyo in 1977, Kusama’s artwork continues to span across several mediums, including varying textures and styles of painting, sculpture, installation, poetry, and performance, all of which were innovative ideas. infusing her work with her obsessive ideas, mediums, and patterns.

Kusama — Infinity shares not only the multi-layered struggles of an artist’s life, but the life of an female, immigrant artist whose primary inspiration is her state of mind, and the art she creates adapts alongside her mentality. The film is currently playing in New York at the Film Forum and in Los Angeles at the Nuart Theater, and will premiere nationally throughout September.

Word Count: 498

[maimagazineblog]