Art is often an escape for those creating it, which was very true for cult artist Yayoi Kusama, which is told in this new graphic novel biography about her life.
When many think of graphic novels, the biography genre is definitely not the first to pop into ones mind. In fact, in a medium that contains basically every genre known to mankind, from superhero to horror to crime to romance, it’s odd to not even consider thinking about a biography within the medium. There have been a few, such as March, but they aren’t very common. However, just because they aren’t common doesn’t mean that it can’t be done as Kusama shows. Writer/Artist Elisa Macellari tells the story of Yayoi Kusama in a way that really could have only been done in the comics medium.
Well, to start off, it should be made clear is that I was not very familiar with who Yayoi Kusama was before reading this graphic novel and never once was I confused about her story in this graphic novel. This may not seem like that big of deal, but it really is. In any biographical story, it’s important to never assume that your audience knows who they are reading about, that way anyone could pick up the book and learn about the subject.
Macellari does an excellent job of implanting you right into Kusama’s life by making you feel almost like a fly on the wall for much of the graphic novel. This is exactly what needed to be done and Macellari did so well.
Beyond just making you feel like a fly on the wall of Kusama’s life though, Macellari makes Kusama incredibly compelling. This may not seem like that big of deal because if someone wasn’t compelling, why would there be a biography at all? But there are plenty of compelling figures who have biographies in various mediums fall flat. However, throughout the entire book, Kusama never loses her compelling nature as the subject. You are always interested in where the story of her life is going to take.
But really though, what makes this graphic novel stand out is Macellari’s art. So much of it is in a style that is reminiscent of Kusama’s own artwork while also channeling classic Japanese artwork, but in a way that never copies either and feels unique. It takes a couple of pages to get used to, but once you do, this graphic novel is gorgeous to look at. Macellari’s style enhances every single bit of prose storytelling that happens in this book.
There are also several points in this book where the artwork takes on a psychedelic surrealism that is pitch-perfect for visualizing Kusama’s life with mental illness, the artwork visually conveys this sense of mental illness incredibly well.
The way that Macellari plays around with this deviating during several important parts of the graphic novel are captivating, but they never lose a visually continuity with everything else in the book. This is difficult for artists to pull off, but Macellari does so wonderfully.
