Yayoi Kusama Japanese, b. 1929

Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese artist who has been creating ground-breaking work since the late 1950s. She is known for her Infinity Nets series, which features large-scale dot paintings, sculptures, and installations. Her work explores themes of infinity, repetition, and the relationship between the self and the universe. Kusama was born in Matsumoto, Japan in 1929. She began creating art at an early age and was inspired by the art of Georgia O'Keeffe and Odilon Redon. In 1957, Kusama moved to New York City, where she became a leader of the avant-garde art movement. During this time, she created a series of Infinity Net paintings, which featured large, repetitive patterns of circles and dots. Her work was met with critical acclaim, and she was featured in numerous exhibitions. In 1973, Kusama returned to Japan due to mental health issues. Since then, she has continued to create art in her studio in Tokyo. Her work has been featured in solo and group exhibitions around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Tate Modern in London, and the Pompidou Center in Paris. Kusama has been awarded several honours and awards, including the Venice Biennale's Golden Lion Award (1993) and the Order of Culture from the Emperor of Japan (2006). She has also published several autobiographical works, including Infinity Net: The Autobiography of Yayoi Kusama (2011). Kusama's work is widely celebrated for its bold use of colour, its themes of infinity, and its exploration of the relationship between the self and the universe. Her work continues to influence a new generation of artists and her career has been recognized as one of the most important of the 20th century.