Get to know Yayoi Kusama, a Japanese artist known for her extensive
use of polka dots and for her infinity installations, in this
fascinating nonfiction Level 3 Ready-to-Read, part of a series of
biographies about people "you should meet!"
Meet Yayoi Kusama. When Yayoi Kusama was a little girl, she told her
parents she wanted to be an artist. Her parents forbade her and tore up
her drawings. But that didn't stop her. When she couldn't afford art
supplies, she used old paper sacks and mud to create her art.
Eventually, she convinced her parents to let her go to art school and
study painting. In 2006, she became the first Japanese woman to receive
the Praemium Imperiale. It is one of the highest honors given by the
Japanese imperial family. Ten years later, she received the Order of
Culture, another prestigious award given to people who make important
contributions to Japanese culture. Today, she is one of the most famous
artists in the world.