MARK'S has collaborated with Avant-garde artist and novelist,Yayoi Kusama, to create the cover of MARK'S Diary. It is now introduced at Maison et Objet, one of the largest international trade fairs of interior & home-fashion objects in Europe.
YAYOI KUSAMA
Avant-garde artist and novelist. Born in Nagano Prefecture
Has created fantastical paintings using polka dots and nets as motifs since childhood. Went to the United States in 1957, where she showed huge paintings, soft sculptures and environmental art employing mirrors and electric lights. In the latter 1960s, she organized many happenings and engaged in fashion designing as well as film production. Her original works and activities which made a big impact on the art world established her status as an avant-garde artist. Since her return to Japan in 1973, she has continued to show works both in Japan and abroad, and exhibited open-air sculptures in various parts of the world. Working energetically on new art pieces, she plays an active part in artistic activities, often traveling the world for exhibitions of her works.
Prizes received include: 1983: The Tenth Literary Award for New Writers from the magazine Yasei Jidai (for the novel, The Hustlers Grotto of Christopher Street). 2000: The 50th Education Minister's Art Encouragement Prize, Foreign Minister's Commendations. 2003: Arts et Lettre (Officier) from French Government, Nagano Prefectural Governor's Commendations (for academic, artistic and cultural merit), the 18th Praemium Imperiale: Painting Category. 2006: Lifetime Achievement Prize (U.S.A.), the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, the Praemium Imperiale. 2009: Selected as a Person of Cultural Merit. 2012: Became a member of American Academy of Arts & Letters.
