Yayoi Kusama is one of those artists whose work you probably recognise even if you don’t know much about contemporary art. The polka dots, the pumpkins, mirrored rooms and endless trippy patterns have become instantly recognisable, and this autumn they take over the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam.
From 11 September 2026 to 17 January 2027, Yayoi Kusama is a major retrospective spanning more than 70 years of the Japanese artist’s career. The exhibition brings together works from different periods of her life, showing how her fascination with patterns, repetition, identity and infinity has developed over the decades. Following her passing on 14 August 2026, at the age of 97, this exhibition has taken on a different meaning, becoming a posthumous tribute to one of the most influential artists of the 20th and 21st centuries.
I’ve had the chance to see it at the press preview on 9 September, and I was completely mesmerised! It’s one thing to see her art online, and a completely different one to see it right in front of your eyes, or to immerse yourself in the infinity rooms. It was very interesting to see how Kusama’s art evolved over her career, from the drawings she used to make as a 10 year old girl in Japan, where you already can see the patterns that made her famous starting to appear, to an entire room taken over by her art. It all made her long artistic journey feel very tangible.
An entire wing, and two infinity rooms
The museum dedicated an entire wing to the Kusama exhibition, a thing that they don’t normally do. There are, of course, plenty of the works Kusama is best known for, including her iconic pumpkins, but the highlight is a new version of her immersive installation created for the Stedelijk. The exhibition was developed in close collaboration with Kusama and her studio and is one of the last major exhibitions in which she was personally involved. There are two mirrored rooms (the Infinity Mirror Rooms), each offering its own little journey into Kusama’s infinite universe, so make sure you experience both.
Kusama has been to the Stedelijk before
This is not Kusama’s first time in this museum. She showed here twice in the sixties. First in the nul exhibition of 1962, where she was the only woman among the participants, and then again in 1965. That same year she gave the Stedelijk Aggregation: One Thousand Boats Show, a rowing boat covered in white protrusions in a room papered with photographs of the same boat. It has been in the museum’s collection ever since, and it is in this exhibition.
She was close to the artists around the Dutch Nul group, Henk Peeters in particular. In 1967, in the chapel of the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam, she painted dots all over the naked body of Jan Schoonhoven. According to curator Leontine Coelewij, Kusama felt at home in the Netherlands, where she found an open and tolerant atmosphere that suited her artistic and experimental spirit.
I left the exhibition with a sense of wonder, but also with a mix of joy and more unsettling feelings. Her art is bizarre, fascinating, beautiful, and intriguing. If you are in Amsterdam in this period, you should definitely go see it. Outside, the museum itself is covered in polka dots and the trees at the Museumplein as well. And if you’d like to immerse yourself more in Yayoi Kusama’s world, Cafe Restaurant Sandberg has created a special dinner inspired by her art.
Practical notes
When: 11 September 2026 – 17 January 2027. You have to reserve your spot in advance and go there at the designated time slot. Opening hours: daily 10.00 – 18.00.
Tickets: €32.50 for adults, which includes the surcharge for this exhibition. €10 with a Museumkaart, I amsterdam City Card or GoCity Pass, €17.50 with a student card, CJP or EYCA, and free if you are under 18. The ticket covers the permanent collection and the other exhibitions too, and you can stay in the museum all day. Only the Kusama rooms are tied to your start time.
For more information check out the museum’s website.
If you’re interested in more exhibitions, check out: Upcoming Exhibitions and Art Events This Autumn – Amsterdam and Beyond.
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