ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Afterall launches Yayoi Kusama One Work book with video conversation

publication · 2026-04-22

On November 22, 2012, Afterall introduced the newest entry in its One Work series, which centers on Yayoi Kusama's Infinity Mirror Room — Phalli's Field (1965). The event included a discussion between Jo Applin, the book's author, and art historian Briony Fer, now accessible as a video. This publication delves into the installation's enduring relevance within Kusama's 'obsessional art,' exploring themes of contemporary theory, eccentric abstraction, play, sexuality, and softness. Applin serves as a Lecturer in the History of Art at the University of York and has authored Eccentric Objects: Rethinking Sculpture in 1960s America. Fer, a Professor at UCL and expert on Eva Hesse, wrote The Infinite Line: Re-making Art After Modernism. This collaboration with Central Saint Martins Fine Art Research offers the book through The MIT Press and independent bookstores.

Key facts

  • Afterall launched One Work book on Yayoi Kusama's Infinity Mirror Room — Phalli's Field on 22 November 2012.
  • The launch included a conversation between author Jo Applin and art historian Briony Fer.
  • A video recording of the conversation is available online.
  • The work Infinity Mirror Room — Phalli's Field was first exhibited in 1965 in New York.
  • Jo Applin is a Lecturer at the University of York and author of Eccentric Objects.
  • Briony Fer is Professor at UCL and author of The Infinite Line.
  • The event was a collaboration between Afterall and Central Saint Martins Fine Art Research.
  • The book is available from The MIT Press and independent bookshops.

Entities

Artists

  • Yayoi Kusama
  • Jo Applin
  • Briony Fer
  • Eva Hesse

Institutions

  • Afterall
  • University of York
  • University College London (UCL)
  • Central Saint Martins
  • The MIT Press
  • Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design
  • University of the Arts London

Locations

  • New York
  • York
  • London
  • United Kingdom
  • King's Cross
  • Granary Square

Sources