Yayoi Kusama’s Largest Public Sculpture to Date Is Unveiled in London

The acclaimed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama has just unveiled a monumental sculpture, Infinite Accumulation, at the entrance of Liverpool Street Station in London. The work is the artist’s first permanent public sculpture in the U.K. and—quelle bonne surprise—it’s not one of Kusama’s famous dotted pumpkins.

The public sculpture now installed at the busy railway station was inspired by her main artistic obsession (and a signature element of her work), the polka dot. In the ten-meter-high and twelve-meter-wide site-specific sculpture, Kusama’s dots are gleaming silver spheres, linked together into an enveloping constellation gravitating in space. Their polished surfaces enhance the mesmerizing effect of the work, reflecting the surroundings, allowing the viewers to become part of the art installation while also being an extremely Instagram-friendly attraction.

“London is a massive metropolis with people of all cultures moving constantly,” the artists said in a press release. “The spheres symbolize unique personalities, while the supporting curvilinear lines allow us to imagine an underpinning social structure.”

Reportedly, Kusama conceived the sculpture intuitively, hand-twisting the wires on the original model to design the movement of the dynamic serpentine arches. Notably, the sculpture also establishes an exciting conversation with the railway’s existing architecture.

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“Commuters and visitors are in for a real treat when they arrive at Liverpool Street and are welcomed by Kusama’s Infinite Accumulation,” Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, said in a statement. “Kusama is one of the world’s leading artists and so it is fitting that this is the final work in a brilliant series of contemporary art commissions for the Elizabeth line. The arts are a vital part of London’s success, helping transform our spaces and connect our communities as we build a better London for all.”

The sculpture was commissioned by The Crossrail Art Foundation’s public art program for the Elizabeth line, with the support of Victoria Miro, and made possible through funding from both the British Land and the City of London Corporation.

This work by Kusama adds to the already remarkable list of contemporary public artworks located in or over several London stations, including Douglas Gordon’s undergroundoverheard at Tottenham Court Road station, Chantal Joffe’s A Sunday Afternoon in Whitechapel at Whitechapel Station and Conrad Shawcross’s Manifold (Major Third) 5:4, which was unveiled at the western entrance of Moorgate station in 2023. An additional six new artworks are set to be installed in the London Tube network this year as part of the Art On the Underground program.

This latest installation by Kusama is not the only work by the artist now on view in London; a second public installation is in Kensington Gardens throughout the summer. Presented by Serpentine Galleries and the Royal Parks in Kensington Gardens, Kusama’s Pumpkin (2024) is the artist’s tallest bronze pumpkin sculpture to date at six meters tall and five-and-a-half meters wide. Installed prominently by the Round Pond, the bronze sculpture creates a captivating conversation with the nature surrounding it as people can engage with it from a variety of viewpoints.

Yayoi Kusama’s signature pumpkins can be found around the world. One of her monumental pumpkins, also yellow with black spots, is permanently installed on the art island of Naoshima, Japan, Another of her large-scale pumpkins, this one red with black dots, is permanently displayed in Matsumoto, her hometown. Other permanent outdoor installations by the artist include the mirrored balls of Kusama’s Narcissus Garden at The Glass House in Connecticut and her oversized, colorful flower sculptures, Flowers That Bloom at Midnight, which remained at the New York Botanical Garden after her memorable show in 2021. She became one of the top-selling artists in 2023, generating a total of $80.9 million at auction that year.