‘Til infinity us do part
The proposal, caught on camera! Image courtesy of the couple. Work shown: Yayoi Kusama. Infinity Mirrored Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away, 2013 © Yayoi Kusama
Deciding to propose to your partner is a big deal. How and when to pop the question is no small matter either. It’s something you want to get just right. Art fan and AGO visitor Edwin decided that Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors was the perfect place to propose to his long-time girlfriend, Maria.
“We love the arts and try to see as many AGO exhibitions as we can. When we heard about the Yayoi Kusama show, we knew we just couldn’t miss it,” Maria told us. “Edwin had been trying to get us tickets online, but had no luck. We knew the best way to get tickets was to go in person and wait in the rush line.” (The romantic duo was right. All advanced tickets for Yayoi Kusama are now sold out and the daily rush ticket line is the only way to get tickets to the show, which closes on May 27.)
But the path to getting engaged wasn’t all roses and love songs. “The week we planned to see the show, we were both sick with the flu, so we agreed to line up for tickets when we felt better. By the weekend I felt better, but Edwin was still under the weather. Sunday morning I woke up to a call from Edwin. The poor thing, sick as he was, had lined up at 8 am to get tickets for us. He got them!”
Halfway through the exhibition, the couple was in line for their most anticipated Infinity Mirror Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away. Edwin snuck off for a moment and whispered his plan to the attendant, who tried not to smile too broadly at Maria and give anything away.
When Edwin and Maria stepped into the Infinity Mirror Room and the door closed behind them, Maria was excited to take in the art. Edwin bent down to tie his shoelace. With 30 seconds in the room, Edwin needed to make each second count.
Maria remembers urging him to stand up: “I said, ‘The lights are coming on! Stand up so we can take a picture!’ All the while I was snapping pictures and he’s calling my name, telling me to turn around. Then I saw him, down on one knee, holding the ring, and asking me to marry him.”
“I wanted to propose in one of the Infinity Mirror Rooms as a symbol I want to be married to Maria forever,” adds Edwin.
Congrats Maria and Edwin! Wishing you a lifetime of infinite happiness!
