Yayoi Kusama // Lightings of the Metropolis, 1978

  • Yayoi Kusama, Lightings of the Metropolis, 1978. Spray enamel and ink on paperboard, 27.3 × 24.1 cm. A post-New York work reflecting Kusama’s experimentation with surface, light, and psychological intensity.
    Lightings of the Metropolis, 1978
    Spray enamel and ink on paperboard, 27.3 × 24.1 cm (10 ¾ × 9 ½ in.)
    © Yayoi Kusama. Image reproduced for educational and informational purposes only.
     
    Executed in 1978, Lightings of the Metropolis reflects Kusama’s move toward more intimate formats during her post-New York years in Japan, a period when she withdrew from large-scale happenings and installations to focus on works created within the solitude of her studio. By employing spray enamel and ink on paperboard, she explored new ways of manipulating texture, layering, and light.
     
    The interplay of materials creates a shimmering surface that captures both immediacy and atmosphere, evoking the sensory overload of city life. At the same time, the repetition and rhythmic mark-making connect the piece to her lifelong investigation of infinity, transforming the urban environment into a psychological landscape as much as a physical one.

  • “My eternal soul is brimming with countless visions.”

     – Yayoi Kusama

    Created during a period when Kusama was developing a deeply introspective studio practice, the work combines her fascination with repetition and organic rhythm with a renewed sensitivity to light, atmosphere, and psychological states. Pieces such as this illustrate her ability to translate external realities into symbolic and meditative compositions, bridging her avant-garde past with her increasingly inward focus.