Yayoi Kusama // Cup, 1979

  • Yayoi Kusama, Cup, 1979. Acrylic on canvas, 46 × 38 cm. A domestic subject transformed through Kusama’s obsessive motifs and introspective practice in late 1970s Japan.
    Cup, 1979
    Acrylic on canvas, 46 × 38 cm (18 1/8 × 15 in.)
    © Yayoi Kusama. All rights reserved. Image reproduced for educational and informational purposes only.
     
    Painted in 1979, Cup reflects Kusama’s continued fascination with reinterpreting everyday domestic objects through her distinctive visual language. Executed in acrylic on canvas, the work demonstrates her ability to take a familiar subject and transform it into a symbol of psychological depth, aligning with the obsessive motifs of repetition and accumulation that had defined her practice since the 1960s.
     
    Created during her post-New York years in Japan, Cup is part of a broader series of intimate works from the late 1970s that mark Kusama’s shift toward a more introspective studio-based practice. These paintings underscore her ability to turn private vision into enduring symbols, bridging her avant-garde legacy with the personal, contemplative works that would dominate her later decades.

  • “My art originates from hallucinations only I can see. I translate them into paintings, sculptures, and installations.”

     – Yayoi Kusama

    By focusing on simple subjects like a cup, Kusama demonstrated that even the most ordinary objects could become vessels for her visions. Through repetition and surface patterning, she stripped away their everyday function and reimagined them as symbols of her inner world. These late 1970s works show how she continued to channel her psychological experiences into tangible form, turning private hallucinations into art that speaks universally.