Who Is Yayoi Kusama? Age, Biography and Wiki
Yayoi Kusama was born on March 22, 1929, making her 96 years old as of 2025. An iconic figure in contemporary art, Kusama is best known for her immersive installations, polka dot patterns, and her exploration of psychological themes. Her work spans various mediums including painting, sculpture, and performance art. Kusama's career began in the late 1950s, and since then, she has become an important figure in the avant-garde movement, gaining recognition worldwide for her creativity and pioneering approach.
| Occupation | Pop Artist |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | March 22, 1929 |
| Age | 96 Years |
| Birth Place | Matsumoto, Nagano, Empire of Japan |
| Horoscope | Aries |
| Country | Japan |
Popularity
Yayoi Kusama's Popularity over time
Height, Weight & Measurements
Yayoi Kusama stands approximately 5 feet 2 inches (157 cm) tall. Her weight and specific measurements remain private, reflecting her desire to maintain focus on her artistic contributions rather than her physical appearance. Kusama is known for her vibrant personality which resonates through her art rather than traditional celebrity attributes.
Family, Dating & Relationship Status
As of 2025, Yayoi Kusama remains single and does not have a romantic partner. Throughout her life, she has faced various challenges concerning relationships, often channeling her experiences into her art. Kusama has chosen to prioritize her career and artistic pursuits, contributing to her legacy as one of the most influential artists of our time.
Born into a family of merchants who owned a plant nursery and seed farm, Kusama began drawing pictures of pumpkins in elementary school and created artwork she saw from hallucinations, works of which would later define her career.
Her mother was not supportive of her creative endeavors; Kusama would rush to finish her art because her mother would take it away to discourage her. Her mother was physically abusive, and Kusama remembers her father as "the type who would play around, who would womanize a lot".
The artist says that her mother would often send her to spy on her father's extramarital affairs, which instilled within her a lifelong contempt for sexuality, particularly the male's lower body and the phallus: "I don't like sex. I had an obsession with sex. When I was a child, my father had lovers and I experienced seeing him.
My mother sent me to spy on him. I didn't want to have sex with anyone for years ... The sexual obsession and fear of sex sit side by side in me." Her traumatic childhood, including her fantastic visions, can be said to be the origin of her artistic style.
Net Worth and Salary
Yayoi Kusama’s net worth is estimated to be around $100 million as of 2025. Over the years, her work has fetched staggering amounts at auctions, with some pieces selling for several million dollars. Her earnings also come from book publications, exhibitions, and collaborations with various brands, solidifying her status as a financial powerhouse in the art community.
Career, Business and Investments
Kusama's career spans over several decades, with her early works being integral to the pop art movement in the 1960s. Some of her most notable installations include the Infinity Mirror Rooms and her pumpkin sculptures. In addition to her artistic endeavors, she has launched several business ventures, including collaborations with fashion brands and merchandise that feature her iconic designs. These diverse investments have enhanced her income and broadened her influence within the art and fashion industries.
When Kusama was ten years old, she began to experience vivid hallucinations which she has described as "flashes of light, auras, or dense fields of dots".
These hallucinations included flowers that spoke to Kusama, and patterns in fabric that she stared at coming to life, multiplying, and engulfing or expunging her, a process which she has carried into her artistic career and which she calls "self-obliteration".
Kusama's art became her escape from her family and her own mind when she began to have hallucinations. She was reportedly fascinated by the smooth white stones covering the bed of the river near her family home, which she cites as another of the seminal influences behind her lasting fixation on dots.
Social Network
Yayoi Kusama maintains a presence on social media platforms like Instagram, where she shares insights into her artistic process and ongoing projects. Her online following continues to grow, where fans and art enthusiasts connect with her vision and creativity. Despite her age, Kusama utilizes digital platforms to reach out to a new generation of admirers.
In 1961, she moved her studio into the same building as Donald Judd and sculptor Eva Hesse; Hesse became a close friend. In the early 1960s, Kusama began to create so-called soft sculptures by covering items such as ladders, shoes and chairs with white phallic protrusions.
Despite the micromanaged intricacy of the drawings, she turned them out fast and in bulk, establishing a rhythm of productivity which she still maintains. She established other habits too, like having herself routinely photographed with new work and regularly appearing in public wearing her signature bob wigs and colorful, avant-garde fashions.
Education
Kusama studied at the Kyoto City University of Arts, where her foundational education in the arts began. Despite facing challenges throughout her educational journey, including mental health struggles, her perseverance led her to pioneer innovative art styles that resonate globally. Kusama's continuous learning and exploration have shaped her work and personal philosophy.
Kusama was raised in Matsumoto, and trained at the Kyoto City University of Arts for a year in a traditional Japanese painting style called nihonga. She was inspired by American Abstract impressionism. She moved to New York City in 1958 and was a part of the New York avant-garde scene throughout the 1960s, especially in the pop-art movement.
Embracing the rise of the hippie counterculture of the late 1960s, she came to public attention when she organized a series of happenings in which naked participants were painted with brightly colored polka dots.
She experienced a period in the 1970s during which her work was largely forgotten, but a revival of interest in the 1980s brought her art back into public view. Kusama has continued to create art in various museums around the world, from the 1950s through the 2020s.
