Media Release
10 November 2009 Media enquiries:
For Immediate Release
Open City, Open Late

Experience City Gallery’s Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years, with a twist City Gallery Wellington welcomes back its popular Open City late night sessions where art, music and culture come together. Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years has captured the heart of Wellington, and City Gallery is offering a great way to see the exhibition in a more relaxed setting.

From 5pm till 10pm on Thursday 19 November Wellingtonians will be able to enjoy the dizzying world of Yayoi Kusama - after work. Visitors will be able to unwind with a drink, listen to the bubbly psych/soul/electro sounds of DJ Jack Uzi and immerse themselves in the most talked about exhibition in Wellington. Tens of thousands of people have already discovered Kusama’s sensory world, and Open City provides another way to experience the art, the environment and the Gallery.

It is also the last opportunity to see the Hirschfeld Gallery’s Make Way: Regan Gentry which closes on November 22. The natural light of this gallery means that an evening viewing is quite a different experience. Make Way provides an interesting counterpoint to Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years. Both artists share a fascination with the immersive potential of gallery spaces interest but explore it in very different ways, Kusama’s enveloping environments creating a unique contrast to Regan’s monumental architectural form.

Nikau Café will be joining in the atmosphere, providing a cash bar with Japanese-inspired beverages.

Entry charges apply ($10/$8).

Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years is a partnership between Museum Boijmanns van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney and City Gallery Wellington. It is curated by Jaap Guldemond (Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen), Franck Gautherot, Kim Seungduk (Le Consortium, Dijon), with additional works selected for Australasia by Judith Blackall, Director of Artistic Programmes, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney and Paula Savage Director, City Gallery Wellington.

Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years 27 September, 2009 - 7 February, 2010 City Gallery Wellington, Civic Square, ph: 04 801 3021 citygallery@wmt.org.nz Admission: $8/$10. $25 family (2 adults, 2 children). FREE every second Wednesday City Gallery Wellington is managed by the Wellington Museums Trust with major funding support from Wellington City Council.

ENDS