Skip to main content

Spring 2024 Lesson 3: Yayoi Kusama


Yayoi Kusama

YAYOI KUSAMA (草間 彌生) was born March 22 1929 in Matsumoto, Japan. She is 94 years old and still making art! She works primarily in sculpture and installation, and is also active in painting, performance, video art, fashion, poetry, fiction, and other arts. She has been acknowledged as one of the most important living artists to come out of Japan, the world's top-selling female artist,[2] and the world's most successful living artist.[3] Her work influenced that of her contemporaries, including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg.

Before you begin the project, please have students watch this video describing Yayoi Kusama's life and art or read to your class "Yayoi Kusama: From Here to Infinity". You can find copies of the book in the art closet.  







Yayoi Kusama Infinity Boxes

 

 

 

Supplies


·      1- 4x4” white box per student

·      2- 4x4” mirrors per student

·      Large dot stickers

·      Small dot stickers

·      1 pack model magic per student 

·      Glue dots/rectangles

 

 

The Project




*This project will take between 1 1/2 and 2 hours to complete.  We recommend splitting this lesson up into two sessions.  

 

*For TK-1st we recommend assembling the box and placing the mirrors for the students ahead of time.  

 

*These projects will be displayed at open house in the cafeteria.  Please have the project completed by May 10th.  You may store the projects in the computer lab.  

 

 

Part 1- Creating The Box

 

1.     Hand out boxes and Mirrors. 


2.     Assemble the box. Leave the base insert to the side until after the mirrors    are installed. 



3.     Placing the mirrors.  The mirrors are to be placed in the inside of the box. The 1st mirror should be placed on the back panel of the box.  To do this peel the paper from the back of the mirror to reveal the adhesive. The adhesive is super sticky.  Make sure to angle the mirror in diagonally to avoid it sticking before it is fully in place (see photos below).  Stick the mirror to the back panel. 


4.    The 2nd mirror should be placed on the front panel of the box. Repeat the above steps to place the second mirror. 


5.    The mirrors have a protective sheet on front of them you can remove these before or after they are installed in the box.  


6.    Once the mirrors have been installed place the base insert into the box. 


 

7.     Decorating the boxes- Hand out the large and small dot stickers to students.  There are two types of large dot stickers-individual colors and multicolor sheets.  Students can choose how and what colors they would like to decorate their boxes in.  The only rules are to keep it abstract like Yayoi and to make sure every blank side of the box has dots, inside and out, with the exception of the outside bottom of the box.  It takes approximately 150 large dots per student. Keep in mind some students will zoom through this while others will take a great deal of time.  Encourage students to think about what they would like their finished box to look like. 



8.    Have students write their name and their teacher’s name on the outside bottom of their box.  


9.    Part 1 is now complete


 

Part 2- The Sculpture

 

1.    Hand out the model magic.  The students can choose between white, red, yellow, or blue.  Students also have the option to share packets to mix their own colors.  The sculpture(s) however should be a single color. 


2.    Creating the sculpture- Yayoi Kusama uses simple shapes like spheres in her work.  Have the students think about what shape they would like their sculpture(s) to be.  The students have a choice between making one or multiple sculptures for their box.  



3.    Once the students have created their sculptures.  It’s time to place on the dots.  Hand out the small dot stickers and place the dots on the sculptures.  The clay does not need to be dry to place the dots on. Just make sure the students gently press on the dots to make sure they are secure. 



5.    Secure the sculptures in the infinity box. Have students place a small glue dot/rectangle where each of their sculptures is supposed to go.  Place the sculptures on the glue dots to secure in place. 



 

6.    Close the box up for safe keeping and the project is finished! 



Popular posts from this blog

The Versa-tile-ity of Mosaics!

What is a mosaic? A mosaic is a picture or pattern made up of small and sometimes irregular pieces of stone, glass, ceramic, tile, or paper. They are held in place by plaster or some other type of glue. We often see mosaics in our everyday life and not even notice them. They can be found on a wall, a floor, or even a ceiling. They were very popular in Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, and Mesopotamia.  Cave Canem in Latin translates to “Beware of Dog” in the doorway of an ancient home of Pompeii. This not only was a warning sign, but also helps archeologists today see clues as to how people lived. See the chain around the dog’s neck? What does this tell you? A very impressive floor mosaic from Pompeii is the Alexander mosaic, also called the Battle of Issus mosaic, though a good portion of it is no longer around. It shows Alexander the Great charging Darius III of Persia. It date back to 120-100 BC. Here is a smaller portion of it up close. This is Alexander the Great. This whole mosai...
Read more
  Open House Relief Sculptures Due May 22nd What is a relief sculpture? Watch the video below to find out.    https://www.artsq.org/techniques/v/what-is-relief-sculpture-low-relief-high-relief-sunken-relief Now that you have learned a little bit about relief sculpture, look at the two images below. How is the relief sculpture different from the freestanding sculpture?    A  relief sculpture  is attached to a flat surface (like a wall or background). It sticks out from that surface but is not fully separate. A  freestanding sculpture  stands on its own and is not attached to a background. You can walk all the way around it. In the video you learned about three different categories of relief sculptures: High relief, low relief, and sunken relief. Let's start with some examples of high relief art.  The Project Materials: White paper (1 piece)  Pencil Wood frame (1 per student) Modeling clay( 1 pack to be shared between 2...
Read more

Audubon Birds

Square 1 Art: A Project Inspired by Audubon's Birds What is the Square 1 Art project? Why is it so important? Square 1 Art is a program that replicates student art on a variety of keepsakes to raise funds for the arts programming in our school.  Last year, Verdugo Woodlands raised enough money to fund this year's entire Art Rep program!  It engages students in creating art that they can share with others. It nurtures each student's creativity, provides them with a sense of pride, engages parents and children, creates long-lasting memories, and helps sustain visual arts in the school .    Every year, an art project is selected to help guide our students’ artmaking. This year, we have chosen to do a lesson on Audubon.    You, the Art Reps, play a very important role in facilitating this program. You will provide help to students and your classroom teacher throughout this process. You will be the cheerleader, organizer, and administrator of the program in the ...
Read more