Pumpkin
Medium: Cast bronze multiple with patina
Year: 1998
Size: 27.9 x 27.9 x 25.4 cm (11x11x10 inches)
Edition: 100
Incised with signature, date and stamp numbered on the underside
With the Fonderie Monnaie De Paris stamp
Cast in bronze, Kusama’s Pumpkin multiple from 1998 is the perfect marriage of Yayoi Kusama’s unique artistic sensibilities and love for the natural world. Often remarking that plants and flowers would come alive and speak to her, this multiple’s rich patina ages gracefully and adds a dimensionality to the perfectly imperfect organic form. Solid and compact, this work is a grounding force in an artist oeuvre that often consisted of the artist overcoming her personal fears through obsessive creation.
Kusama worked with the Fonderie Monnaie De Paris to produce the multiple. Founded in 1775 to produce the alloys for the manufacturing of coins and medals, the foundry transitioned to working with artists in 1973 and is one of the last active foundries in the heart of Paris. Over the years, she continues to celebrate the pumpkin and treat them as unique – their dimpled skin and bulbous curves only accentuating the beauty of this unpretentious gourd.
Auction Results
Ravenel Taipei: 30 November 2025
Estimated: TWD 2,000,000 – 3,600,000
TWD 4,560,000 / USD 145,225
YAYOI KUSAMA (Japanese, 1929)
Pumpkin, 1998-2012
Bronze
Edition 99/100
Engraved bottom YAYOI KUSAMA and dated 1998
Inscribed 2012 99/100 FONDERIE DE PARIS
Conceived in 1998; cast in 2012
Phillips Hong-Kong: 1 June 2024
Estimated: HKD 700,000 – 900,000
HKD 1,016,000 / USD 132,080
YAYOI KUSAMA
Pumpkin, 1998
Bronze
Incised with the artist’s signature, dated and numbered ’33/100 YAYOI KUSAMA 1998′ along the bottom edge
Executed in 1998, this work is number 33 from an edition of 100
Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Monnaie De Paris
Christie’s London: 29 June 2023
Estimated: GBP 50,000 – 70,000
GBP 119,700
YAYOI KUSAMA (B. 1929)
Pumpkin, 1998
Bronze
Incised with the artist’s signature, date, stamped with the foundry mark and number ‘2008 N˚ 32/100 YAYOI KUSAMA 1998’ (lower edge)
Conceived in 1998 and executed in 2008, this work is number thirty-two from an edition of one hundred
Phillips New-York: 26 October 2022
Estimated: USD 80,000 – 120,000
USD 151,200
YAYOI KUSAMA
Pumpkin, 1998
Cast bronze multiple with patina
Incised with signature, date and stamp numbered 31/100 on the underside
With the Fonderie Monnaie De Paris stamp
SBI Art Auction: 28 May 2022
Estimated: JPY 8,000,000 – 14,000,000
JPY 16,675,000 / USD 131,170
YAYOI KUSAMA
Pumpkin, 1998
Bronze
Incised signature, date and impressed number on the lower side
From the edition of 100
Poly Auction Hong-Kong: 29 November 2021
Estimated: HKD 550,000 – 750,000
HKD 1,071,000 / USD 137,325
Bronze
Incised with the artist’s signature, number, date
Stamped with the foundry mark ’87/100 YAYOI KUSAMA 1998′ on the underside
This work is number 87 from an edition of 100
SBI Art Auction: 30 October 2021
Estimated: JPY 6,500,000 – 9,500,000
JPY 14,375,000 / USD 126,130
YAYOI KUSAMA
Pumpkin, 1998
Bronze
Incised signature, date and impressed number on the lower side
From the edition of 100
Poly Auction Hong-Kong: 3 December 2020
Estimated: HKD 650,000 – 850,000
HKD 767,000 / USD 98,955
YAYOI KUSAMA
Pumpkin, 1998
Bronze sculpture
Edition: 92/100
Inscribed, dated, editioned and signed
‘BR 2012 N° 92/100 BRONZE FONDERIE DE PARIS YAYOI KUSAMA 1998’
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