Can we start off by saying how fun the Yayoi Kusama exhibition at the National Gallery Singapore was? LOVE IT!
My first encounter with Yayoi’s artwork was a photo of her gigantic yellow pumpkin sculpture by the sea in Naoshima, Japan (see below), which I found online while researching on a trip to Japan. I remember how captivating the yellow pumpkin was, and eventually went to read up more on the artist herself and the mental struggles behind her artworks. At first glance, her boldly coloured artworks with simple lines and dots resembles pieces from the naive art genre. Who knew, the meaning behind her artworks was on the darker side, but I guess it does makes us appreciate her art even more.
(Photo from amuse-i-d.vice.com)
According to Yayoi, her repetitive patterns – dots, straight lines, webs – seek to achieve self-obliteration, so that anyone or anything becomes part of the universe. What is also interesting is that in her very act of repeating these patterns, she loses herself in the process of art creation, which helps her to deal with her mental illness. I gave this dotting practice an attempt (out of sheer curiosity how Yayoi uses purely dots to give her subjects a more 3D look) and understood this feeling she meant. If you have time and interest in this, give it a try. 🙂
The happy colours at the exhibition really lifted our mood, and we were also inspired by Yayoi’s art style and created a series of Yayoi Kusama-inspired artworks. Because of the use of repetitive patterns used, taking photos from different angles created totally different perspectives!
How would a soup made with black-dotted pumpkins taste like?
When I’m dreaming of dotted mushrooms and you found me under one.
He searched high and low, and found a flower as quirky as her.
Marvelling at the dots on our octopus friend. Would you be a friend, or would you run away?
Finally, here is our first vlog. It is a super short one, but we hope you enjoy it! 🙂
xoxo
The Bun Girl