The Polka Dot Princess: Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Kusama Exhibition
Yayoi Kusama Exhibition, Image by Lizzy Shaanan Pikiwiki Israel, (CC BY 2.5), via Wikimedia Commons (Cropped)
Pumpkin by Polka Dots
Image created by Maritza Lohman, for Art Sphere Inc.

Yayoi Kusama, born in Japan in 1928, is a multimedia artist who does performances, writes poetry, and creates installations, sculptures, and paintings. Throughout these varying mediums, all of her projects have polka dots in common, which is why she is often called the Princess of Polka Dots! 

Kusuma creates nature and landscapes, and one of her more recognized works are her pumpkins. She creates polka-dotted pumpkins with patterned backgrounds. Today, make a polka-dotted pumpkin inspired by Yayoi Kusama! 

This project is one of the virtual classes exploring women artists, hosted on Facebook Live from 1:30-2pm every Wednesday and Friday. Materials and instructions are posted here afterwards. Tune into the live classes to ask questions, give suggestions, and interact with other students who are stuck at home!

If you want to watch the recording of the live video, check out our Facebook page or Youtube channel!

Materials

  • blank paper
  • something to draw with

Instructions

  1. Draw a pumpkin! Watch the Facebook live for tips on drawing a pumpkin! 
  2. Add polka dots to your pumpkin. Uses different sizes of polka dots like Kusuma. Make sure your polka dots are eye catching! 
  3. For the background, you can leave it blank, create a landscape, or just draw a horizon line. In her backgrounds, Kusuma uses polka dots and other line patterns. Choose how you would like to pattern your background. 
  4. After you have added your polka dots and any other patterns, pick a color to color the negative space. Her works are very colorful, so the less white space, the better. 
  5. Hang up your work and share it with us using #loveartsphereinc on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, and tell your friends and family about the Polka Dot Princess!