A Museum for Yayoi Kusama, the Princess of Polka-dots

Located in the residential district of Bentencho in Tokyo, the private Yayoi Kusama Museum stands out from its surroundings. Designed by architect Kume Sekkei, this imposing building constructed in autumn 2017 is completely white and pierced with large bay windows, the light from which illuminates the building’s surroundings when night falls. What else would one expect from the den of an artist who has always swum against the tide of convention?

Sculptures, paintings, and installations

Yayoi Kusama is an internationally renowned artist. A voluntary resident of a psychiatric hospital in Tokyo, she set up a studio opposite this building and has been using it since the 1970s to create her colourful, instantly recognisable works. She fills the studio with dots in an almost obsessive way, which has earned her the nickname of ‘the princess of polka-dots.’

Sculptures, paintings, and installations fill the five floors of the museum, and there is a reading space where visitors can look at the artist’s collection of exhibition catalogues.

But be warned: the Yayoi Kusama Museum is like an impenetrable tower. Due to its limited capacity, tickets must be purchased in advance from the museum’s website. They go on sale at 10 a.m. (Japan time) on the first day of each month for entry the following month. Avant-garde has to be earned.

More information on the Yayoi Kusama Museum can be found on its website.