Hong Kong arts figures, fans pay tribute to Yayoi Kusama after artist’s death at 97

Japanese avant-garde artist Yayoi Kusama passed away on August 14 at the age of 97 after suffering from multiple organ failure in a Tokyo hospital. Her death has prompted tributes from Hong Kong's arts community, with figures such as West Kowloon Cultural District Authority chairman Bernard Chan and designer Lam Shu-kam expressing their condolences.

Among Kusama's notable works are her signature polka dot patterns and pumpkin sculptures. Her studio and Tokyo's Yayoi Kusama Museum confirmed her passing on Thursday. Chan shared that visiting Kusama in person at her Tokyo studio in March 2023 was a deeply moving experience that he will never forget.

Lam Shu-kam recalled their collaboration with Kusama in 2007 for the "Yayoi Kusama: Dots Obsession. Soul of Pumpkin" exhibition at Hong Kong's Harbour City shopping centre, marking Hong Kong's first large-scale outdoor display of her works. The exhibition featured Kusama's iconic pumpkin and infinite dot motifs, which drew millions of visitors.

Actress Ivana Wong Yuen-chi paid tribute to Kusama, praising her for opening minds and providing comfort to countless souls. Art critic Lau Kin-wai noted that Kusama's motifs of dots and pumpkins presented a simple, colorful world that resonated with younger generations. Her works, he said, had a soothing effect and conveyed a sense of universal unity.

Kusama's "Yayoi Kusama: 1945 to Now" exhibition at Hong Kong's M+ museum was particularly popular, drawing 280,000 visitors. The exhibition, which ran from November 2022 to May 2023, marked the largest retrospective of Kusama in Asia outside Japan at the time. The exhibition's success led to its export to the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain in 2023 and the Serralves Museum in Porto, Portugal, in 2024.