Yayoi Kusama is a renowned Japanese artist known for her distinctive and immersive art style. She works in various mediums – painting, sculpture, performance art, and installations.

At age 95 she still produces art, living in an insane asylum – her choice – in Tokyo.

Kusama has been an artist for most of her life, and her work has been displayed at exhibitions around the world.

Early on as a child she developed an interest in art, flowers being her favourites. She enrolled in art school, even though her mother was totally against it.

Her art is heavily influenced by hallucinations and is the source of much of it. She experienced these hallucinations – starting at age 10 – describing them as “flashes of light, auras, or dense fields of dots.”

After a year of studying Classical Japanese art she left, finding it boring.
In 1958 – by that time she already had six art exhibitions of her own in Japan – she moved to the United States, first landing in Seattle and then New York, inspired by the rise of Abstract Expressionism and the avant-garde lifestyle.

Despite her dramatic impact and ascent in the New York art scene, she struggled with recurrent anxiety, depression and poor health due to the intensity of her work.

In 1972, she suffered a dramatic event. Her platonic partner of 11 years, Joseph Cornell, died.

In 1973 she moved back to Japan unhappy with American consumerism and its excesses.

But the move meant starting all over again in her career as an artist, with the Japanese art world and press shunning her. That led to a suicide attempt and resulted in her checking herself in voluntarily at a Tokyo psychiatric clinic. She had read that art was conducive to alleviating mental illness.

But despite all those setbacks, trials and tribulations she persevered and gradually she was recognized for her art.

It started in Europe.

The acclaims for her art was phenomenal – a slew of international public art institutions showcasing her work, buying it for their collections.

The world’s top private art galleries featuring her art in countless exhibitions.

Kasuma’s art is notable in three respects.

1. The use of dots, vibrant colours and repetitive patterns.

2. Butterflies and flowers.

Installation art – where art pieces are part of a general show and sculptures, usually featured in public spaces.

Last year she became the world’s highest-grossing artist with sales of $80.9 million, surpassing the British artist David Hockney at $50.3 million.

Below is a great video about Kusuma talking about her work with others from the art giving perspective and context.