Yayoi Kusama Prints // 1990s

The 1990s to 2000s marked a turning point in Yayoi Kusama’s career, as her motifs became more widely recognised and her market presence began to grow significantly. Having returned to Japan in the mid-1970s, Kusama used the following decades to re-establish herself, with the 1990s introducing the pumpkin as a central motif. These dotted forms, tied to her childhood memories and lifelong fascination with repetition, became a cornerstone of her practice and a recurring theme in her prints and sculptures.

 

Her editioned works from this era show an increased use of vibrant colour and graphic clarity, combining natural motifs, pumpkins, flowers, butterflies, and fruit, with her obsessive use of dots and nets. The prints created during this period bridged her earlier explorations of psychological intensity with a more expansive visual language that could connect with international audiences.