The largest bronze sculpture ever made by Yayoi Kusama

Pumpkin, the new sculpture created by the Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, will be unveiled on July 9th in the open spaces of the Serpentine Gallery in London, who with this work pays homage to the Japanese pumpkin, one of the most present elements in the creative imagination of artist since his childhood. The sculpture, 6 meters high and 5.5 meters wide, will be installed at the Round Pond in Kensington Gardens, where it will be open to visitors until November 3. Decorated with the characteristic “polka dot” motif, Kusama’s trademark, the pumpkin symbolizes serenity and the joy of living, communicating with the surrounding environment and allowing the public to observe it from numerous different perspectives. THE NEW “PUMPKIN” OF KUSAMA EXHIBITED AT KENSINGTON GARDENS Considered one of the most relevant active Japanese artists, Yayoi Kusama has been celebrated throughout the world since the 1960s for her provocative performances, installations and large-format sculptures, through which she questions herself and the public on themes that are both personal and far-reaching, such as nature, the relationship with food and sex, memory and infinity. The new installation at the prestigious London gallery represents a shared artistic experience, which invites spectators to interact with the work: the choice to place it outdoors allows Kusama to recreate a dialogue between art and nature, where the sculpture becomes an integral part of the green landscape of Kensington Gardens.A TRIBUTE TO NATURE AND CHILDHOODThe ninety-five-year-old Japanese artist returns to the Serpentine Gallery, which in 2000 hosted his first retrospective in the United Kingdom, with a work that fits into his vast corpus as a new exploration of the themes of repetition and infinity. Remembering that “pumpkins have been a great comfort to me since I was a child: they are so tender to touch, so attractive in color and shape”, Kusama returns to represent the beloved cucurbit by decorating it with the polka dot pattern dear to the artist, respecting his consolidated style is full. The imposing sculpture thus confirms itself as a visual reference point that celebrates the continuity between past, present and future in Yayoi Kusama’s original and distinctive art.[Immagine in apertura: digital rendering of Pumpkin, 2024, © YAYOI KUSAMA, Courtesy Ota Fine Arts, Victoria Miro, and David Zwirner]