A PUMPKIN RB-B

Medium: Screenprint in colors on Verin d’Arches paper
[3 screens, 2 colors, 3 runs]
Year: 2004
Image: 24 x 28.5 cm (9.4 x 11.2 inches)
Sheet: 33 x 38.5 cm (13 x 15.2 inches)
Edition: 80
Artist’s Proofs: 8 AP
Printer’s Proofs: 5 PP
Printer: Okabe Tokuzo, Tokyo
Literature: ABE 328
Yayoi Kusama Prints 1979-2017, ABE PUBLISHING LTD, Number 328, Illustrated page 188

Signed, dated, and numbered in pencil on lower edge

Bursting forth from a black, crackled background is Yayoi Kusama’s iconic motif: the polka-dot pumpkin. Characteristically fitting with the artist’s eccentric personality, the print is a symbol of organized chaos. Seemingly shifting in size before our eyes, the dots which compose the pumpkin represent the obliteration of the self and the vast cosmos, whereas the mesh-like infinity nets that blanket the background represent the interconnectedness of life. Combined with her dots, the composition becomes a repetitive meditation, a therapeutic relief which allows the artist to combat anxiety.

The pumpkin has preoccupied Kusama since her childhood in Japan, stemming from her family’s nursery business and her early experiences of hallucinations; specifically, a pumpkin which spoke to her younger self from a vine. However, where some of Kusama’s visions are terrifying, the artist’s fascination with the fruit is drawn from its “humorous form” and the “warm feelings” it evokes. Kusama frequently recalls the “human–like” essence of pumpkins, offering each print its own personality, individually personified. Kusama exaggerates the postures of the pumpkins, ranging from slumping to proud, large or diminutive.

Since 1970 Kusama has reimagined her beloved motif in various mediums and scales, celebrating the “unpretentious and simple beauty” of the pumpkin; from its first 1946 rendition in the traditional Japanese Nihonga style, to the monumental black and yellow sculptures which have stood on Naoshima Island, Japan, and in Kensington Gardens, London. By continuing her exploration of self–obliteration through her pumpkins, the artist continues her creation of what she calls “Kusama world” – a unique, immersive artistic universe, characterized by her obsessive polka dots, infinity rooms, and, most importantly, pumpkins.

Auction Results

K Auction Seoul: 28 May 2025
Estimated: KRW 40,000,000 – 80,000,000
KRW 46,000,000 / USD 33,440

Est-Ouest Auctions Tokyo: 22 February 2025
Estimated: JPY 2,500,000 – 3,500,000
JPY 4,830,000 / USD 31,595

YAYOI KUSAMA
A PUMPKIN RB-B (328), 2004
Screenprint
Signed, titled, dated and numbered on the margin
From the edition of 80

New Art Est-Ouest: 28 May 2024
Estimated: JPY 3,500,000 – 5,500,000
JPY 5,060,000 / USD 32,509

YAYOI KUSAMA
A PUMPKIN RB-B (ABE 328), 2004
Screenprint
Signed, titled, dated and edition in the margin
Title written in pencil as “A PUMPKIN RB-D”
Edition: 80 + 8 AP + 5 PP

K Auction Seoul: 31 May 2023
Estimated: KRW 49,000,000 – 80,000,000
KRW 59,800,000 / USD 45,330

YAYOI KUSAMA
A PUMPKIN RB-B (ABE 328), 2004
Screenprint
Signed, titled, dated and numbered “PP” on the front
A printer’s proof
Edition: 80 + 8 AP + 5 PP