ART-PRESENTATION: Yayoi Kusama-Narcissus Garden
The Glass House celebrating the 110th Anniversary of Philip Johnson’s birth and the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Glass House site to the public, presents into the Glass House’s 49-acre landscape, the installation of Yayoi Kusama, “Narcissus Garden”, a that celebrates its 50th anniversary from its first presentation at the 33rd Venice Biennale, at
By Efi Michalarou
Photo: The Glass House Archive
At the landscape of Philip Johnson’s Glass House, the installation “Narcissus Garden”, comprising 1,300 floating steel spheres, each approximately 30 cm in diameter (30 cm) is installed in the Lower Meadow and forest, creating a dramatic view to the west of the Glass House. Drifting in the newly restored pond, the spheres move with the wind and follow the pond’s natural currents, forming a kinetic sculpture. Although Yayoi Kusama was not officially invited to exhibit, according to her autobiography, she received the moral and financial support from Lucio Fontana and permission from the chairman of the Biennale Committee to stage 1,500 mass-produced plastic silver globes on the lawn outside the Italian Pavilion. The tightly arranged 1,500 shimmering balls constructed an infinite reflective field in which the images of the artist, the visitors, the architecture, and the landscape were repeated, distorted, and projected by the convex mirror surfaces that produced virtual images appearing closer and smaller than reality. The size of each sphere was similar to that of a fortune-teller’s crystal ball. When gazing into it, the viewer only saw his/her own reflection staring back, forcing a confrontation with one’s own vanity and ego. During the opening week, Kusama placed two signs at the installation: “NARCISSUS GARDEN, KUSAMA” and “YOUR NARCISSIUM [sic] FOR SALE” on the lawn. In an attempt to both engage viewers and critique the commercialism of the art world, Kusama was selling the balls for 1200 lira each, she is stopped by Biennale authorities who object to the artist selling her work, but the installation remained. This original installation of Narcissus Garden from 1966 has been frequently interpreted by many as both Kusama’s self-promotion and her protest of the commercialization of art. Another work on the on view is Kusama’s recently created steel “PUMPKIN“ (2015). Also from September 1 through 26, Kusama will create an “Infinity room” with the Glass House itself covered with Infinity polka dots. The polka dots directly engage the architecture of the Glass House, complementing its structure and aesthetics, breathing new life into the house. For Kusama, the polka dot represents an individual, its own universe. Similarly, Philip Johnson created his own private universe at the Glass House, sculpting every aspect of landscape experience into his own universe.
Curator: Irene Shum, The Glass House, 199 Elm Street, New Canaan, Duration: 1/5-30/11/16, Days & Hours: Mon-Sat 9:30-18:00, Sun 11:00-18:00, You have to book in advance, http://theglasshouse.org
