MyArtBroker Film Reviews: Kusama: Infinity (2018)

Kusama: Infinity delivers a comprehensive documentary, drawing on a wealth of archival footage, personal interviews, and historical context to chart the artist’s tumultuous journey. Director Heather Lenz carefully assembles Kusama’s story, weaving together firsthand accounts from those who knew her, footage from her early career, and glimpses into the artist’s personal reflections. The inclusion of Kusama’s own voice adds an authenticity that elevates the documentary beyond a standard art retrospective, allowing the audience to connect with her perspective and emotions rather than simply observing her through the lens of external commentators.

However, while the documentary details her struggles and triumphs, it occasionally feels restrained in its storytelling, as if hesitant to push too deeply into the more complex or controversial aspects of her life. Kusama’s art is known for its radical energy, boundless creativity, and unapologetic defiance of norms, yet the documentary’s pacing at times lacks that same dynamism. Certain segments adhere to a conventional biographical structure that moves from one chapter of her life to the next without fully exploring her motivations or the deeper psychological themes present in her work.

Additionally, the documentary prioritises interviews with colleagues and friends over art critics, which results in a more personal but perhaps less critical examination of her artistic contributions. While hearing from those who knew Kusama personally adds warmth and intimacy, it also means that some of the more analytical discussions about her influence on contemporary art, her place within movements like Minimalism and Pop Art, and the technical innovations behind her installations are somewhat underdeveloped. A deeper exploration of how Kusama’s work evolved in response to both internal struggles and external artistic trends could have strengthened the documentary’s impact.

One of the most compelling aspects of Kusama: Infinity is its depiction of the gendered and racial barriers Kusama faced as a Japanese woman navigating the art world in 1960s America. The documentary rightfully acknowledges how her male contemporaries, most notably Andy Warhol, appropriated her ideas while she remained largely overlooked. Kusama pioneered immersive environments, large-scale installations, and radical performance art, yet her work was initially ignored by the predominantly white, male art establishment. Despite her undeniable influence, she struggled to receive the same level of institutional support and critical acclaim as her male peers. Kusama: Infinity makes it clear that her erasure was not incidental, but was a direct result of systemic biases that favoured white men while marginalising women and artists of colour.

However, while Kusama: Infinity acknowledges the sexism Kusama faced, it does not go far enough in addressing how racial and cultural biases also played a role in her marginalisation. As a Japanese woman in post-World War Two America, Kusama was not only battling gender discrimination but also the deeply ingrained xenophobia and racial prejudices of the time. The documentary briefly touches on incidents of racism, but does not delve into how these experiences shaped her identity, her art, or her outlook on the world. The documentary largely frames her struggles under the broad umbrella of “women in a male-dominated world", which is a slightly reductive take.

However, Kusama’s story is one of persistence in the face of exclusion. She did not fit neatly into the American art world, nor did she conform to the expectations placed on Japanese women of her generation. Her refusal to compromise set her apart, and while Kusama: Infinity successfully highlights the injustices she endured, a deeper exploration of the racial, cultural, and historical contexts surrounding her struggles would have made the documentary even more powerful.

Kusama’s art is inseparable from her personal struggles, and Kusama: Infinity captures the relentless nature of her creative drive. More than just a means of artistic expression, her work is a coping mechanism as a way to externalise the psychological battles she has endured since childhood. Her infinite polka dots, boundless Infinity Nets, and immersive mirrored environments are manifestations of deeply rooted obsessions.

The documentary explores Kusama’s use of art as a means of survival, charting how she channelled personal trauma and mental distress into works that oscillate between beauty, anxiety, and overwhelming sensory immersion. Whether painting compulsively as a child to escape a turbulent family life or later staging provocative “happenings” in New York to challenge societal norms, her career has been defined by an unwavering need to create. This obsessive dedication sets her apart from many of her contemporaries, reinforcing the idea that for Kusama, making art was never just a profession but an existential necessity. Despite her self-imposed institutionalisation in Japan later in life, Kusama continued creating, proving that her devotion to art transcended circumstance. The documentary underscores how even from a psychiatric hospital she maintained an extraordinary output.

Kusama’s work is an ongoing dialogue with infinity as both a reflection of her internal chaos and a defiant attempt to assert control over it. Her ability to turn suffering into creativity is one of the most powerful aspects of her art.

Kusama: Infinity successfully captures Kusama’s relentless pursuit of artistic expression, her defiance of societal constraints, and her ability to transform pain into transcendent works of art.