To celebrate its 15th anniversary, the PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art is pleased to present YAYOI KUSAMA DANCING LIGHTS WHO FLY TOWARDS THE UNIVERSE


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July 6, 2022–January 15, 2023
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Hosted by Cheryl Sim
Free
Reservations required
MONTREAL, April 21, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Born in Matsumoto, Japan, in 1929, Yayoi Kusama is one of the most popular living contemporary artists in the world today. Over the past seven decades, she has created paintings, sculptures, installations, drawings and films, as well as performance, fashion, design, literature and immersive installations such as her famous Infinity Mirrored Rooms. Supported by social media and praise from the artist, these works have attracted massive audiences around the world over the past ten years. However, beyond the heavy publicity surrounding the installations, Kusama’s practice has consistently engaged with the vastness of the cosmic realm and its place, and our place within it: a concept steeped in both concern and wonder.
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This exhibition will introduce visitors to the spiritual and philosophical depth of the artist’s work. Since her earliest forays into painting, sculpture and performance, Kusama has long explored the conceptual and formal aspects of phenomenology and immersion in her work. At a time when the digital and the virtual have overwhelmed our sensibilities, Kusama’s environments offer analog experiences that place viewers both within and beyond our universes. The Montreal exhibit will feature three of his bronze pumpkin sculptures of varying sizes, two new “peep-in” halls of mirrors, a grid of vibrant sounds my eternal soul paintings, as well as two striking Infinitely mirrored rooms. Infinity Mirrored Room – DANCING LIGHTS THAT SOAR INTO THE UNIVERSE (2019), from which the show takes its title, is filled with suspended glowing globes that alternate colors before abruptly darkening. The viewer is absorbed in darkness for a moment before the luminous spheres slowly re-ignite, again initiating a near cycle of life and rebirth.
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The exhibition will also include a reading room with a historical timeline of the artist’s life and career. Kusama has made prodigious contributions to art history through her work, and she continues to operate as a key figure in contemporary art. In these difficult and turbulent times, compounded by the isolation and uncertainty of the past two years, her work facilitates feelings of comfort and peace.
This will be the artist’s first solo exhibition in Quebec. We anticipate that this will be an event highly anticipated by the Montreal and Quebec public, as well as a major attraction for local and international tourists.
Although admission is free, a reservation for timed entry will be required to ensure short waiting times and a pleasant passage through the exhibition.
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With special thanks to Yayoi Kusama and the team of David Zwirner and Ota Fine Arts.
For more information, please visit our website: https://phi.ca/en/phi-paths/
About Us
PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art
Founded in 2007 by Phoebe Greenberg, the PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing the public with impactful contemporary art experiences. Our programming is international in scope, locally relevant and free to reinforce a commitment to accessibility and inclusion. The Foundation is driven by the desire to shatter entrenched perceptions of what contemporary art is and who it is for, with the fundamental belief that art is for all of us. The Foundation strives to create a home for the art, the artists and the public we serve, dedicated to nurturing friendly exchanges that celebrate art as part of our daily lives.
PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art
451 & 465 Saint-Jean Street
Montreal (Quebec) H2Y 2R5
FREE ENTRANCE
Public relations
Myriam Achard
Head, New Media Partnerships and Public Relations
Such. : 514 779-8868 • [email protected]
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