April 10, 2021

KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature at New York Botanical Garden (NYBG), April 10 – October 31, 2021

“The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) opens its expansive 2021 exhibition, KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature, featuring work by internationally celebrated Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. Postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the exhibition includes four experiences debuting at the Botanical Garden. NYBG is the exclusive venue for KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature. The exhibition is installed across the Garden’s landscape, in and around the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, and in the LuEsther T. Mertz Library Building.

The exhibition, related programs, and accompanying publication reveal Kusama’s lifelong fascination with the natural world and its countless manifestations beginning in her childhood spent in the greenhouses and fields of her family’s seed nursery in Matsumoto, Japan. The exhibition includes works from throughout Kusama’s prolific career and multifaceted practice. By integrating seasonal horticultural displays, KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature further illuminates the power of nature that pervades the artist’s practice and dynamic body of work.” — NYBG

KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature guest curator Mika Yoshitake, Ph.D., said, “For Kusama, cosmic nature is a life force that integrates the terrestrial and celestial orders of the universe from both the micro- and macrocosmic perspectives she investigates in her practice. Her explorations evoke meanings that are both personal and universal. Nature is not only a central source of inspiration, but also integral to the visceral effects of Kusama’s artistic language in which organic growth and the proliferation of life are made ever-present.” 

Dancing Pumpkin, 2020, The New York Botanical Garden, Urethane paint on bronze, 196 7/8 x 116 7/8 x 117 ¼ in. (500 x 296.9 x 297.8 cm), Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts and David Zwirner. Photo by Robert Benson Photography.
I Want to Fly to the Universe, 2020, The New York Botanical Garden, Urethane paint on aluminum, 157 3/8 x 169 3/8 x 140 1/8 in. (400 x 430 x 356 cm), Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts and David Zwirner. Photo by Robert Benson Photography.
Narcissus Garden, 1966/2021, The New York Botanical Garden. 1,400 stainless steel spheres. Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo/Singapore/ Shanghai; David Zwirner, New York; Victoria Miro, London/Venice. Photo by Robert Benson Photography.
Ascenscion of Polka Dots on the Trees, 2002/2021. The New York Botanical Garden, Printed polyester fabric, and aluminum staples installed on existing trees, Site-specific installation, dimensions variable, Collection of the artist. Photo by Robert Benson Photography
My Soul Blooms Forever, 2019, The New York Botanical Garden, Urethane paint on stainless steel, Installation dimensions variable, Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Victoria Miro, and David Zwirner. Photo by Robert Benson Photography.
Life, 2015, The New York Botanical Garden, Fiberglass-reinforced plastic, tiles, and resin, Installation dimensions variable, Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts and David Zwirner. Photo by Robert Benson Photography.
KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature, The New York Botanical Garden, 2021. Photo by Robert Benson Photography.
Kusama in Flower Obsession, Photo by Yuzuke Miyazake © YAYOI KUSAMA 2021.

Images courtesy New York Botanical Garden.

KUSAMA: Cosmic Nature, Part 1, published June 13, 2020: https://wp.me/p4LMQA-bKO.