Yayoi Kusama’s Iconic ‘Pumpkin’ Washes Helplessly Out To Sea After Typhoon
Photo ID 162615211 © Maritxu22 | Dreamstime.com
On Monday, when Typhoon Lupit brought strong winds and heavy downpours to Naoshima in southwestern Japan, a certain famous dotted pumpkin sculpture took a pretty hard hit.
Videos and photos began to swarm social media as users observed Yayoi Kusama’s Pumpkin (1994) being tossed around by the unrelenting waves, looking rather forlorn and helpless before rescuers came to its aid.
直島のシンボルが…..#台風9号 pic.twitter.com/7l9b65ivSe
— 歪みっぱなしの帝国. (@ppdisundia) August 9, 2021
The exhibit which is in charge of Pumpkin, Benesse Art Site, tweeted a confirmation that the sculpture had been retrieved from the choppy waters and carefully hauled away to safety. It also appears to have sustained damage and will need to be restored.
直島
— takaaoki (@aomizuki2007) August 9, 2021
朝のかぼちゃ
波がやばい pic.twitter.com/MWtuDV9K36
This isn’t Pumpkin’s first time at the (rather stormy) rodeo; the six-and-a-half-foot statue was spotted being whisked away to safety before a fatal typhoon hit in around in August 2019, almost exactly two years prior to this. This year, it seems that the sculpture wasn’t retrieved in time.
Benesse Art Site has promised to make an announcement when the beloved pumpkin’s wounds have been patched up and if it’s fit for return to its usual spot on the very tip of the pier.
It’s a Naoshima icon, and the bright yellow and black dots will surely be missed until their joyous gourd-shaped return.
[via The Washington Post, photo ID 162615211 © Maritxu22 | Dreamstime.com ]
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