On the occasion of the museum’s first anniversary in November 2023, M+ in Hong Kong debuted its first special exhibition, a retrospective of the art world icon Yayoi Kusama. Entitled “Yayoi Kusama: 1945 to Now,” more than 200 works have been sourced from museums and private collections across the world for this major presentation, which is open through May 14, 2023. Taking a novel approach to examining the legendary artist’s practice, viewers will find seven decades of work representing Kusama’s trademark aesthetic and how it has been employed in her quest to explore life, death, and a need for interconnectedness.
Co-curated by Doryun Chong, Deputy Director, Curatorial, and Chief Curator at M+ and the independent curator Mika Yoshitake, the show has been presented in a layout that is both chronological and thematic. Aspects of Kusama’s entire oeuvre—installations, drawings, sculptures, collages, moving images, and more—are explored through the conceptual spaces looking at the themes Infinity, Accumulation, Radical Connectivity, Biocosmic, Death, and Force of Life, beginning with her earliest work to her most recent. The show also features three new works on view for the first time ever, including a commission titled Death of Nerves, a mirrored immersive environment from 2022 titled Dots Obsession—Aspiring to Heaven’s Love, and two Pumpkin sculptures, which greet visitors in the main hall on the ground floor.
