Yayoi Kusama, who splashed polka dots across art world, dies at 97

Tokyo: Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, who splashed her signature polka dots on paintings, sculptures and museum installations around the world, has died, her company said Thursday. She was 97.

Kusama died Aug. 14 at a hospital in Tokyo, her company, Yayoi Kusama Studio said in a statement.

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Kusama, one of Japan's most respected contemporary artists, was widely exhibited around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.

Repetitive motifs were her trademark, in various shapes, resembling netting, swirls or worms, but most often dots, dancing proudly on her canvases, or as sparkling balls or dots of light in her installations, in all their vibrant psychedelic glory.