# Yayoi Kusama’s Art and Its Clinical Relevance to Neurovisual Phenomena

## TL;DR

Yayoi Kusama's art helps doctors understand complex visual symptoms by visually representing neurological phenomena like palinopsia and visual snow.

## Contribution

The paper introduces Kusama’s art as a novel visual tool for clinicians to better grasp and empathize with patients' neurovisual experiences.

## Key findings

- Kusama’s use of repetition mirrors symptoms like palinopsia and visual snow.
- Her art can serve as a visual analogue for clinicians to understand patient experiences.
- The paper emphasizes art’s role in bridging perception and clinical observation.

## Abstract

Yayoi Kusama’s art offers a rare and powerful window into how neurological disorders can shape visual perception. Many patients struggle to articulate phenomena, flashing lights, trailing images, and shifting shapes, as these experiences fall outside the ordinary visual vocabulary. Kusama’s lifelong use of endless repetition through polka dots and mirrors parallels descriptions of symptoms such as palinopsia and visual snow. This editorial examines how her own representations of complex visual symptoms can serve as visual analogues, offering clinicians a tool to understand and empathize with patients’ experiences. By interpreting Kusama’s work through a neurological lens, it becomes clear how art can bridge lived perception and clinical observation. The associations between specific artworks and named neurovisual phenomena are intended as educational visual analogies rather than diagnostic attributions.