For Halloween, we’re loving pumpkins transformed by Yayoi Kusama’s unique vision. She made them wondrous in ways no one had ever imagined and changed the way we see them forever. 
Yayoi Kusama, Pumpkin, Collection of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo/Singapore © Yayoi Kusama
According to Artspace:
Pumpkin motifs can be found in Kusama’s work dating back to the 1950s.  During her youth, Kusama recalls having consumed the vegetable to the point of nausea, and yet retained an attachment to its irregular form. Combining natural organic forms with highly manufactured materials and mutant psychedelic patterns, Kusama underlines the uncanny nature of the “natural” in modern culture.
Yayoi Kusama
The artist elaborated in a 2015 interview:
I love pumpkins because of their humorous form, warm feeling, and a human-like quality and form. My desire to create works of pumpkins still continues. I have enthusiasm as if I were still a child.
But the titles of some of her pumpkin works affirm their power. This Halloween, we’re realizing…

…all the eternal love we have for pumpkins….

Yayoi Kusama, The Spirit of the Pumpkins Descend into the Heavens, 2015, installation view
…as…

…the spirit of the pumpkins descend into the heavens…

If you’ve found illumination, joy, or inspiration in this post, please consider supporting Improvised Life. It only takes a minute to make a secure donation that helps pay our many costs. A little goes a long way towards helping Improvised Life continue to live ad-free in the world.

Support Improvised Life ♥

2 replies on “yayoi kusama does halloween: ‘the spirit of the pumpkins descend into the heavens’

  1. I love pumpkins too! Such beautiful renditions by Yayoi, Happy Halloween, Yayoi!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *