Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Parade Balloon Revealed

yayoi kusama thanksgiving balloon

World-renowned Artist Yayoi Kusama‘s Thanksgiving Balloon, Love Flies Up to the Sky, is the latest in Macy’s Parade Blue Sky Gallery Series, which invites contemporary artists to contribute their creations to the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon

The Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon is an octopus-looking, sunshine-like creation titled “Love Flies Up To The Sky” and has 300 hand-painted dots, stands 34 feet tall (that’s a 3 story building) by 30 foot long by 36 feet wide and needs 40 handlers.

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Parade Balloon
The balloon on its test flight at Met Stadium by @hypebeastart

Yayoi Kusama has received so much press over the past few years for her signature polka dots and Infinity Rooms that she was the perfect choice for this year’s artsy balloon. Previous artists who created balloons for the parade range from Jeff Koons to KAWS.

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon

Yayoi Kusama Thanksgiving Balloon

The Thanksgiving Day Parade Balloon was inspired by the artist’s My Eternal Soul series of paintings which she began in 2009.

Yayoi Kusama with works from her My Eternal Soul series in Tokyo, 2016 photo by Tomoaki Makino

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will be broadcast from 9am to Noon (all time zones) on Thursday November 28th.

More great work by Yayoi Kusama here