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Tom Power previews Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at the AGO

We take a little field trip to the Art Gallery of Ontario to learn more about what infinity means to artist Yayoi Kusama.
CBC Radio ·

Originally published March 7, 2018

The Art Gallery of Ontario has just opened its doors to Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors, an exhibition of immersive, mirrored installations that's selling out in every city it heads to, including Toronto.

Tom Power was lucky enough to get a walk through of the exhibition before it opened to the public. In this preview, listen to him speak to Adelina Vlas, a curator at the AGO, about what infinity means to artist Yayoi Kusama.

After the tour, the organizer of the exhibition, Mika Yoshitake joins us live from Washington, D.C to shed some light on the installations and the colourful artist behind them. 

Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors is on now in Toronto at the Art Gallery of Ontario. It runs through to Saturday, May 27, 2018. Watch the full tour above. 

Yayoi Kusama. Dots Obsession – Love Transformed Into Dots, 2007, at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Mixed media installation. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo/Singapore; Victoria Miro, London; David Zwirner, New York. © Yayoi Kusama. (Photo by Cathy Carver)
Yayoi Kusama. All the Eternal Love I Have for the Pumpkins, 2016. Wood, mirror, plastic, black glass, LED. Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo / Singapore and Victoria Miro, London. © Yayoi Kusama. (Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo / Singapore and Victoria Miro, London)
Yayoi Kusama. All the Eternal Love I Have for the Pumpkins, 2016, at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Wood, mirror, plastic, black glass, LED. Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo / Singapore and Victoria Miro, London. © Yayoi Kusama. (Photo by Cathy Carver)
Yayoi Kusama, Infinity Mirror Room—Phalli’s Field, 1965. Installation view at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 2017. Sewn stuffed cotton fabric, board, and mirrors. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo/Singapore; Victoria Miro, London; David Zwirner, New York © Yayoi Kusama. (Photo by Cathy Carver)
Yayoi Kusama. Infinity Mirrored Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away, 2013. Wood, metal, glass mirrors, plastic, acrylic panel, rubber, LED lighting system, acrylic balls, and water, 287.7 × 415.3 × 415.3 cm. Courtesy of David Zwirner, N.Y. © Yayoi Kusama. (Courtesy of David Zwirner)
Yayoi Kusama. Infinity Mirrored Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away, 2013, at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Wood, metal, glass mirrors, plastic, acrylic panel, rubber, LED lighting system, acrylic balls, and water, 113 1/4 x 163 1/2 x 163 1/2 in. Courtesy of David Zwirner, N.Y. © Yayoi Kusama. (Photo by Cathy Carver)
Yayoi Kusama, Life (Repetitive Vision), 1998. Installation view of Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 2017. © Yayoi Kusama. (Photo by Cathy Carver)
Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 2017. Left to right: Living on the Yellow Land, 2015; My Adolescence in Bloom, 2014; Welcoming the Joyful Season, 2014; Surrounded by Heartbeats, 2014; Unfolding Buds, 2015; Story After Death, 2014. (Photo by Cathy Carver)
Yayoi Kusama. The Obliteration Room, 2002 to present. Furniture, white paint, and dot stickers. Dimensions variable. Collaboration between Yayoi Kusama and Queensland Art Gallery. Commissioned Queensland Art Gallery, Australia. Gift of the artist through the Queensland Art Gallery Foundation 2012. Collection: Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, Australia © Yayoi Kusama. (Photograph: QAGOMA Photography)

— Produced by Ben Edwards​

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