Infinity Net: The Autobiography of Yayoi Kusama
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- Create Date：2022-01-21 09:51:52
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Yayoi Kusama
- ISBN：1849762139
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Summary
Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama （b。 1929） is one of the most talked-about artists working today。 This remarkable memoir reveals her to be a fascinating figure， channeling her obsessive neurosis into an art that transcends cultural barriers。 Kusama describes arriving in New York in 1957 as a poverty-stricken artist and later becoming the doyenne of an alternative art scene。 She tells of her relationships with Georgia O’Keeffe， Donald Judd， Andy Warhol， and the reclusive Joseph Cornell。 She candidly discusses the obsessive visions that have haunted her throughout her life; returning to Japan in the early 1970s， Kusama admitted herself to the psychiatric hospital in Tokyo where she lives today， and from which she has produced the seemingly endless stream of artworks and writings that have won her acclaim across the globe。
Reviews
翰林院编修
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 无限的网：草间弥生自传 8。0 （428人评价） [日]草间弥生 / 毛丹青 / 中信出版集团·小满 / 2021世界前卫艺术家草间弥生的亲笔自传。撼动人心的自我剖白，天才艺术家的救赎之路。 草间弥生，出生于传统日本旧式家庭，10岁开始创作，28岁前往美国独自闯荡，
Logan Yuhas
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My favorite book ever。 A must read for anyone struggling with their mental health imho。
Maria Escolà
，
Sort que el seu art és millor que aquest llibre， que sinó。。。
Mary
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Fascinating subjectI have long admired Kusama 's work。 It was wonderful to read her story in her own words。 A must read for art lovers Fascinating subjectI have long admired Kusama 's work。 It was wonderful to read her story in her own words。 A must read for art lovers 。。。more
Kate
，
“…beyond the ugliness of Planet Earth with its teeming， mindless cockroaches and rats， and beyond the degeneration of humanity， is the wonder of the sombre silver stars。 The infinite instant of silence from billions of light years away is given life by an unseen power， a momentary existence in the midst of illusion！”
Rosita Grigaitė
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I am a huge fan of Yayoi Kusama's work。 I've been expecting a lot from this book。 It was really interesting to find out more about her life and her early work。 However， towards the middle/end of the book it seemed more like a resume than an autobiography。 It felt like she just listed all the awards she won and the shows she had。 Apart from that - I really enjoyed reading this book。 I am a huge fan of Yayoi Kusama's work。 I've been expecting a lot from this book。 It was really interesting to find out more about her life and her early work。 However， towards the middle/end of the book it seemed more like a resume than an autobiography。 It felt like she just listed all the awards she won and the shows she had。 Apart from that - I really enjoyed reading this book。 。。。more
Hal Lowen
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Picked up on a whim as I have always enjoyed Kusama's work and art （and wrote part of my dissertation on her）！ This reads like a casual retelling of her life over coffee， informal， captivating & relvealing all in one。 It feels personal， wonderfully so， and details a lot of her life and feelings about her work that I hadn't found in any other books about her （obviously）。Thoroughly reccomend， she's a strong woman and a fantastic creative。 There is some moments where she talks about awards and prai Picked up on a whim as I have always enjoyed Kusama's work and art （and wrote part of my dissertation on her）！ This reads like a casual retelling of her life over coffee， informal， captivating & relvealing all in one。 It feels personal， wonderfully so， and details a lot of her life and feelings about her work that I hadn't found in any other books about her （obviously）。Thoroughly reccomend， she's a strong woman and a fantastic creative。 There is some moments where she talks about awards and praise but it's well deserved and doesn't go on enough to feel "too much"。 Plus - it has pictures！ 。。。more
MoJo
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Parts of the book were genuinely interesting， particularly those where she talked In depth of her relations with other artists。 Some parts were even inspirational - her views on death， for instance。 But I found myself skimming large sections where she reports on her successes。 I was also disappointed in the lack of depth regarding her own psychology。 That said， I do not doubt her talent nor her integrity。
Yuzhu Zhang
，
preparing for the retrospective of Kusama
Kat Ponte
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An insightful view into the unconventional mind of one of the greatest artists of all time。 Her story is told boldly， illustrating the motives of her work， telling the story of mental health in relation to her creativity。 Beautifully written。
Catalina
，
3。5✨ This was a very interesting read because of the woman behind the book， but the writing made it a bit of a chore to read。 That is perhaps because it is a translation。
Ellie Kakoulli
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My first foray into the bizarre， surreal and utterly magical world of Yayoi Kusama was back in 2012 at the Tate Modern。 Since then， my admiration and adoration has only increased tenfold。“Infinity Net” is an all to brief， but still incredibly eye-opening and engaging account that documents the fascinating life of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama。 Throughout her career Kusama has continuously innovated and re-invented her artistic “style”。 Most well known for her repeating dot patterns， her art encom My first foray into the bizarre， surreal and utterly magical world of Yayoi Kusama was back in 2012 at the Tate Modern。 Since then， my admiration and adoration has only increased tenfold。“Infinity Net” is an all to brief， but still incredibly eye-opening and engaging account that documents the fascinating life of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama。 Throughout her career Kusama has continuously innovated and re-invented her artistic “style”。 Most well known for her repeating dot patterns， her art encompasses a plethora of techniques and media which has made her one of the most prominent contemporary artist of our time。 From her avant-garde performance pieces in the early 60’s， such as “Happenings” and those controversial public orgies -in protest of the Vietnam War， to her paintings， sculptures and installations， born out of a not-so quiet desperation， to help temper her ongoing battles with obsessive and hallucinogenic neurosis。Conversational in tone， this memoir reveals her rather repressed and conservative early life in rural Japan， and the sheer desperation and longing to pursue an artistic career in the promising land of America。Kusama candidly （and perhaps not so candidly） describes how she slowly but surely， managed to fight her way into the early alternative NY art scene。Slight caveat -I must admit like others who’ve read this book before me， I was slightly unsettled by her rather “full on” self promotion。 Though the more I think about it， the more I think - HECK， YOU GO GIRL！ This was a woman who’s identity was deemed an “outsider” from the get go。 Not only was she a female artist in a HEAVILY male dominated society （and one I’d like to add， that has no qualms with promoting themselves！）， but she was also a Japanese woman， creating such new and exciting pieces， in a still very Western art world。 And， to top it off， was also the unfortunate victim of her own pervasively neurotic dispositions。 Basically， let the woman be and have her moment to not only shine， but be proud of herself and her many achievements！ Of course over time， such ongoing battles with her mental health did eventual take their toll。 And in the early 70’s kusama decided to return to Japan， admitting herself into a psychiatric hospital， where she still lives -and thankfully， continues to create and write today！ “I fight pain， anxiety， and fear everyday， and the only method I have found that relieves my illness is to keep creating art。 I followed the thread of art and somehow discovered a path that would allow me to live。"3。5 stars 。。。more
Evelyn
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The avant-garde artist Yayoi Kusama’s autobiography provides insights into her life and her artistic orb。 After a strong start discussing her life and her work in Japan and New York， it suddenly runs out of gas （in a manner of speaking） as she veers into short slightly hagiographic commentaries on artists who have served as mentors， and criticism of Japanese views on artists and failure to support the arts， while failing to discuss in depth the events in her life during the 1970s and thereafter The avant-garde artist Yayoi Kusama’s autobiography provides insights into her life and her artistic orb。 After a strong start discussing her life and her work in Japan and New York， it suddenly runs out of gas （in a manner of speaking） as she veers into short slightly hagiographic commentaries on artists who have served as mentors， and criticism of Japanese views on artists and failure to support the arts， while failing to discuss in depth the events in her life during the 1970s and thereafter that led to her decision to reside in a mental hospital。If the autobiography had stopped when Kusama returned to Japan in the 1970s， it would have rated 4 stars。 However， due to the tedium of the final quarter of the book it rates 3。5 stars。 。。。more
Anne
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I love the artwork of Yayoi Kusama and find her to be a fascinating person。 I've mostly learned her story through the descriptions of her art in museums and through the documentary "Kusama: Infinity"， so I was very curious to read her story from her point of view。 Interestingly， the documentary often projected her as a victim of sexism and bias in her early career。 It also glossed over some of her less popular art periods。 In her book， Kusama focuses on her successes （often quoting from flatteri I love the artwork of Yayoi Kusama and find her to be a fascinating person。 I've mostly learned her story through the descriptions of her art in museums and through the documentary "Kusama: Infinity"， so I was very curious to read her story from her point of view。 Interestingly， the documentary often projected her as a victim of sexism and bias in her early career。 It also glossed over some of her less popular art periods。 In her book， Kusama focuses on her successes （often quoting from flattering reviews） and describes in detail her earlier artwork and some of her writing much more than the some of the pieces she's become most known for。 It was an important reminder for me that there are at least two perspectives to every story。 That being said， this was not an all-encompassing story of her life。 While she shares some interesting details about how she sees the world （acknowledging her mental illness without categorizing it） and how she translates it into her art， this book is overall a very high-level view of her life。 I got the impression this is the version she presents for interviews， not necessarily a look into her more private thoughts。 Of course， that might be because she shares that through her art。 。。。more
Eirion
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"Fin da ragazzina ho seguito con costanza gli obiettivi che mi ero prefissata e l'ho fatto sopportando gli sguardi ostili di chi mi stava intorno。 Il mio obiettivo è sempre stato quello di vivere come volevo: l'ho reso realtà， e sono soddisfatta della strada che mi ha portato fino a qui"。Meraviglioso: aver reso realtà ciò che si voleva; esserne soddisfatta。 Una donna potentissima。 "Fin da ragazzina ho seguito con costanza gli obiettivi che mi ero prefissata e l'ho fatto sopportando gli sguardi ostili di chi mi stava intorno。 Il mio obiettivo è sempre stato quello di vivere come volevo: l'ho reso realtà， e sono soddisfatta della strada che mi ha portato fino a qui"。Meraviglioso: aver reso realtà ciò che si voleva; esserne soddisfatta。 Una donna potentissima。 。。。more
Irena
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《无限的网：草间弥生自传》（日）草间弥生。
Poppy H
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This was SO interesting， she’s such an incredible woman。 My one fault would be that it sometimes felt like I was reading a textbook， but apart from that it was fab。
Jennifer
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What a life！
Maya
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Dam girl u crey crey
Mary Ann
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Direct words of the artist are revelatory。
Ellie Hothersall
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Stilted and frustrating。 As a complete novice to her work I enjoyed the descriptions of the inspiration and the Happenings， but it really felt very superficial and was in many places just a series of quotes of what other people had said about her work。 Every time something sounded intriguing or worthy of exploration it was glossed over for the next point。 It felt more like an invitation to start serious research into her life than an autobiography。
Rwan Mocha
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Extraordinary！！
Dhattūra
，
Yayoi is very clearly influenced by her Buddhist upbringing， though free from it in many ways， so it seems。 Her palpable fearlessness and devotion to her inner world is medicine enough for the wounded， often invisible hungry ghost in all of us born to this world of gluttony。 May we all heed the healing call from within and honour its silent home of wonder。
Andrew
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Like Andy Warhol， I like the persona of Yayoi Kusama much， much more than her art， most of which I find （decades after the fact） to leave me cold （like Warhol， she had good theory and dull application）。 But she proves far more interesting as a memoirist， and there are some fantastically memorable moments， especially those involving her relationship with misunderstood genius and Norman Bates of the art world Joseph Cornell。 Her descriptions of her inner states， too， somehow resonated， even as ali Like Andy Warhol， I like the persona of Yayoi Kusama much， much more than her art， most of which I find （decades after the fact） to leave me cold （like Warhol， she had good theory and dull application）。 But she proves far more interesting as a memoirist， and there are some fantastically memorable moments， especially those involving her relationship with misunderstood genius and Norman Bates of the art world Joseph Cornell。 Her descriptions of her inner states， too， somehow resonated， even as alien as her experience was。 Even though at times it seemed hacked together， the charm was irrepressible。 I don't know why I liked listening to her so much。 。。。more
Angela
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I loved hearing her perspective about her life and art。
Rachel Prince
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I am a huge fan of Yayoi Kusama and loved reading about her early life and reasoning for the art I had grown to love。 Not the most exciting read， but a good book for insight on her art and state of mind。
Alex
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Like: - the substantial footnotes combined is like a mini history lesson of contemporary art in especially New York- this book provides a comprehensive understanding of Yayoi Kusama both as a person and an artist - her observation of the other artists at her time （from one artist to another， as a peer and a competitor） Dislike:- some paragraphs feel disconnecting to another， or just don’t flow smoothly。 Ex: jumping from one perspective to another， this sentence’s viewpoint contracts with the nex Like: - the substantial footnotes combined is like a mini history lesson of contemporary art in especially New York- this book provides a comprehensive understanding of Yayoi Kusama both as a person and an artist - her observation of the other artists at her time （from one artist to another， as a peer and a competitor） Dislike:- some paragraphs feel disconnecting to another， or just don’t flow smoothly。 Ex: jumping from one perspective to another， this sentence’s viewpoint contracts with the next。 Not sure if it’s a translation issue？ - a bit too much quoting the magazines and reviews。 I personally prefer to keep those as references or footnotes。 。。。more
Julie
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“An artist is by no means superior to others just by virtue of making art。 Whether you are a laborer， farmer， janitor， artist， politician， or doctor， if you have managed in the midst of a society awash with lies and madness to get one step closer to the awe-inspiring brilliance of your own life， the footprint you leave behind is that of someone who has truly lived as a human being。”
Victoria
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Context can be beautiful。 Let us live out own oblivion as it exists within the polka dot。
Simone
，