We were able to go back to the “Infinity Mirrors” exhibit at the Hirshhorn Museum on Saturday morning thanks to special viewing events for members of the museum. When we arrived at our appointed time (before the museum had opened to the public), there were already hundreds of people waiting in line outside, who all had managed to secure timed passes that are available online for about one minute at noon every Monday (no exaggeration, this exhibit is wildly popular, and the passes for the coming week are snapped up in less than 60 seconds).

I must say, it was so nice not to have to battle the long lines inside the exhibit before the general public was let in, plus we were allowed 30 seconds instead of the usual 20 inside the room. We returned just to see the one room we had missed last time and as expected, it was incredibly difficult to photograph -- terribly dark and with lanterns hanging down right in front of us. This time, however, we went through the line of only a few people three times to try to get something halfway decent. Not sure that we did, but we did what we could!

The Hirshhorn’s write-up on this room:

Infinity Mirrored Room—Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity
2009
Wood, mirror, plastic, acrylic, LEDs, and aluminum
Collection of the artist
In Infinity Mirrored Room—Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity, golden lanterns flicker, creating a shimmering pattern of light that contrasts with the seemingly endless void of the mirrored black space. For Kusama, obliteration is a reflection on the experience of death and the potential of the afterlife. The imagery in this work recalls the Japanese tradition of toro nagashi, a ceremony in which paper lanterns known as chochin float down a river to guide ancestral spirits back to their resting places on the final night of the summer obon festivals. The ceremony often commemorates the victims of the atomic bombs. Mesmerizing and intimate, Kusama’s poetic installation underscores the impermanence of life and the certitude of death.

More dots and less dots, posted earlier: