The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne has announced that its Yayoi Kusama survey exhibition, titled "Yayoi Kusama," sold 570,537 tickets, making it the most-visited ticketed art exhibition in Australian history. The show, which ran from 15 December 2024 to 21 April 2025, surpassed the NGV's own record of 462,262 tickets for "Van Gogh and the Seasons" in 2017. Featuring 200 artworks spanning nearly nine decades of the artist's career, including ten infinity rooms, the exhibition was the largest the NGV has ever dedicated to a single living artist. The NGV also acquired two major works from the show: "Dancing Pumpkin" (2020) and "Narcissus Garden" (1966/2024).
This milestone underscores the immense and sustained global appeal of Yayoi Kusama, whose immersive installations and polka-dot motifs continue to draw record-breaking crowds. The achievement also highlights the NGV's growing international stature as a major exhibition venue, capable of attracting blockbuster shows that rival top museums worldwide. The attendance figures, while breaking overall ticket-sale records, also reveal nuances in daily visitation, with the Van Gogh exhibition having a higher daily average due to its shorter run. The acquisition of two key Kusama works by the NGV further cements the institution's commitment to building a significant collection of contemporary art.