Yayoi Kusama // Untitled, 1970 (marker pen on canvas)

  • Yayoi Kusama, Untitled, 1970 (marker pen on canvas)
    UNTITLED, 1970
    ©Yayoi Kusama, Image reproduced for educational purposes only. 
    Back to Yayoi Kusama Originals page
     
    Created around 1970, this work reflects Kusama’s transition from her groundbreaking New York years of the 1960s into a period of consolidation and reflection. During this decade, she had already established herself as a leading figure in avant-garde circles, known for her Infinity Nets, Accumulation sculptures, and provocative performances.
     
    This painting, with its bold use of acrylic and marker pen, illustrates her experimentation with new materials while maintaining the obsessive repetition and psychological depth that defined her earlier practice.

  • "My artwork is an expression of my life, particularly of my mental illness.”

     – Yayoi Kusama

    Works from this era bridge Kusama’s international presence with her eventual return to Japan in the early 1970s, marking a pivotal point in her career as she began shifting from large-scale happenings to a more introspective studio practice.