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When Worlds Collide MOCA hosts “© Murakami,” a retrospective of the works of artist Takashi Murakami.
He’s been described as the Andy Warhol of our generation, and judging by the reception he received at Friday’s press preview for his solo show “© Murakami” at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Takashi Murakami is an art world rock star. It is at “© Murakami,” the most comprehensive retrospective to date of the Tokyo-born artist’s work, that the reasons for Murakami’s worldwide appeal become apparent. From the otaku-inspired life-sized figures of Hiropon (1997) and My Lonesome Cowboy (1998) to fanciful paintings and grand-scale sculptures like Tongari-kun (Mr. Pointy) (2003-2004), Murakami’s exhibition is a forum where the wildly opposite worlds of pop culture, traditional Japanese art and commerce interfuse. “The collision of different worlds is Takashi Murakami’s world,” said MOCA’s Chief Curator Paul Schimmel. “This is some of Murakami’s most important work, paintings and sculptures set against the commercial world of goods and labels.” In tune with Murakami’s knack for blurring the lines between art and commerce, MOCAand Louis Vuitton—for whom Murakami has designed products—have partnered in an unprecedented and, to some, controversial maneuver: the inclusion of a fully operational Louis Vuitton boutique within the exhibition. The pieces on sale are one-of-a-kind, specially created for the occasion and only available at MOCAduring the show. “We decided that it would be OKto sell luxury items here, so we started a new project. Now I’m just waiting for the reaction from it,” said the bespectacled Murakami, donning a ponytail and goatee. The exhibition presents Murakami’s paintings and sculptures in chronological order, tracing the 45-year-old artist’s creative development. Murakami began his formal art training in Nihonga (traditional Japanese painting style) —as seen in his monochrome gunjo study DOB Genesis (1993)—and earned his Ph.D. from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 1993. As Murakami’s skill grows more pronounced and experimental, so too, do his characters’ personas. DOB, who begins in that first painting as a tiny, smiling bulbous character, slowly grows larger and more detailed in later pieces. By 1995, the sometimes cute DOB has sprouted multiple eyes and hideously jagged teeth framed in a wide, deranged smile. It is evident that much of Murakami’s work on display in “© Murakami” draws inspiration from Japanese popular culture, but the artist also borrows imagery from Buddhist and Zen motifs, as seen in Oval Buddha (2007), the aluminum and platinum leaf central sculpture of the show and I open wide my eyes but see no scenery. I fix my gaze upon my heart (2007) and That I may time transcend, that a universe my heart may unfold (2007), paintings of the Bodhidharma, or Daruma, the Indian monk who introduced Buddhism through China to Japan. Demonstrating the artist’s experimentation with all media, a 10-minute clip from Murakami’s animated film “kaikai & kiki” (2007) screens in a darkened theater, which is Murakamibranded, down to the smallest detail. To complete “© Murakami’s” story arc, a sterile white showroom houses Among those enjoying Murakami’s works on Friday was “Giant Robot “His art just lends itself to products, and I think he knows that,” said Nakamura. “When you think of Murakami, for anyone who doesn’t know who he is, you can just say, ‘the guy who put the flowers and color on the Louis Vuitton bag,’ and everybody knows who he is. (Murakami is) part of the pacesetters and influential people that are coming out of Tokyo. I think that’s one of those great contributions to art is making it very accessible and not being afraid to mix the art and commerce thing, which has always been traditionally kind of taboo.” |
