South Brisbane | Everything You Need to Know About GoMA’s Latest Exhibit

Author // Shannon Edwards for Place New Farm

GoMA’s current exhibition ‘Life is the Heart of a Rainbow’ profiles the phenomenal career of Japanese artist, Yayoi Kusama.

Yayoi’s exciting career spans over more than 60 years and counting. Now at 88 years of age, she has been making art longer than many of us have been alive!

For several decades Yayoi’s work has featured polka dots at the centre of her paintings, collages and installations, making her style recognisable as a contemporary favourite.

‘Life is the Heart of a Rainbow’ is presented in five installations and explores her recurring motifs, engagement with the body and her conception of space.

Influenced by abstract expressionism Yayoi’s unique perspective creates a seamless integration of Pop, Surrealism, Minimalism and psychedelia.

Using her trademark motifs of nets, dots, eyes and pumpkins the exhibition includes an encompassing selection of her early paintings, a multi decade presentation of her celebrated works, soft sculpture, performance, the iconic ‘Infinity Rooms’ and large scale installations of her latest career.

‘The Obliteration’ room invites children to engage in the exhibition. Welcoming you into the stark white domestic space you’re asked to brighten the space by adding colourful dots to the furniture, objects and surfaces.

The blank canvas become ‘obliterated’ over the course of the exhibition as hundreds and thousands of dots accumulate in the space.

Other highlights include “I Want to Love on the Festival Night,” a hexagonal installation with external and internal mirrors and multi-coloured flashing lights. As well as “The Spirit of the Pumpkins Descended to the Heavens” which is a mirrored cube that creates unique impressions…sounds like fun!

You know the silver balls floating around in the water outside of Goma? Well they were created by Yayoi too! ‘Narcissus Garden’ was created in 1966 comprising of 1500 silver balls. It was first shown on a patch of grass between pavilions at the Venice Biennale and then recreated the work in 2002 and gifted to GoMA.

Are you as excited about the exhibition as we are? You’ll be able to see Yayoi’s works from now until February 11 2018. See you there!