Yayoi Kusama Dies At 97
The Japanese avant-garde artist made polka dots and infinity rooms global icons.
August 27, 2026 · Updated Aug 27, 3:25pm ET
HuffPostYayoi Kusama, Who Splashed Polka Dots Across Art World, Dies At 97
CBS NewsYayoi Kusama, groundbreaking Japanese artist known for her signature polka dots, dies at 97
New York PostYayoi Kusama, Japanese artist known for her polka dots across the art world, dies at 97 in Tokyo
The Guardian‘I fight pain and fear with art’: how Yayoi Kusama blazed a trail for neurodivergent artists
BBC NewsIn pictures: The dotty world of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama
Breitbart NewsYayoi Kusama, Renowned Artist, Japan’s ‘Polka Dot Queen,’ Dies at 97/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer_public/ba/4e/ba4e90ed-49e5-42ff-84f8-59e10c3f86d1/3cgp84x.jpg "Photo: Smithsonian Magazine")
Smithsonian MagazineYayoi Kusama Created Fantastical 'Infinity Mirror Rooms' That Became the Art World's Most Famous Backdrops. Her Work Spanned Counterculture to the Cosmos
Associated PressYayoi Kusama, who splashed polka dots across the art world, dies at 97 in Tokyo
Wall Street JournalYayoi Kusama (1929-2026): An Artist Who Captured Infinity
NPRYayoi Kusama, high priestess of polka dots, has died
31%
Left · 4
54%
Center · 7
15%
Right · 2
Pano rates the coverage Balanced.
What happened
Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama
Yayoi KusamaJapanese artist (1929–2026), whose polka dots, mirrored "Infinity Rooms" and pumpkin sculptures became globally recognized motifs, died Aug. 14 at a Tokyo hospital at 97. Her representatives said the cause was multiple organ failure, and Yayoi Kusama Studio said she continued painting until her final days. Born in 1929, Kusama built an avant-garde practice across painting, sculpture, installation and performance, with hallucinations informing recurring fields of dots. She had voluntarily lived for decades in a psychiatric hospital while maintaining an international studio practice.
