Yayoi Kusama — one of the most defining artists of the modern era, famed for her obsessive polka-dot patterns, large-scale pumpkin sculptures and dizzying Infinity Rooms — has died at 97. Read our account of her remarkable life here.

Other highlights from the web this week:

☆ Our recommended matcha cafes to visit in Tokyo (beyond the viral — and invariably overcrowded — ones you’ve probably seen on Instagram).

☆ Did you know that Japan has an annual mascot championship? Here are the most bizarre entries from this year’s competition, ranging from a mysterious entity called “Glucose Man” to a personified water boiler.

☆ September is almost upon us. Read your monthly horoscope to see what awaits…

— Callie Beusman, Editorial Director

Renowned Japanese avant-garde artist Yayoi Kusama — one of the most influential artists of the past century — has died at 97.

Many of her motifs have become instantly recognizable: speckled pumpkins, glittering infinities constructed from mirrors, vivid polka dots. Kusama used her art to express her private obsessions, often describing it as a means of survival. As a child, she began experiencing vivid hallucinations, seeing dots, nets, flowers and other patterns that seemed to cover the world around her. She turned to drawing and painting as a way of confronting those visions.

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