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| Takashi Murakami infront of his Superflat artwork |
Written by Hilary Dufour
When someone says Murakami, a lot of people, fortunately or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, may think of the handbags he designed for famed fashion house Louis Vuitton. It was after all, artist Takashi Murakami’s stint with Louis Vuitton that gained him international popularity and “rockstar status.” From an artistic standpoint however, Murakami was not so pleased. He commented in an interview, “I need to rebuild the wall between commercial art and the fine art I do. I need to focus on the fine-art side of me for a while”. Undoubtedly, Murakami’s influence in the Japanese contemporary art scene runs far deeper than his commercially successful handbags.
Mass-produced Pop Art
Murakami is often considered to be a pop artist because of his keen interest in popular culture, particularly that of his birth country of Japan. Pop art’s main goal is to bridge the divide between art and everyday life, bringing everyday life into the art world and vice versa. Murakami has indeed succeeded in bridging this gap with the production of his countless mass-produced consumer products which include t-shirts and mousepads. The Murakami founded Hiropon factory is essential to the production of these various goods as well as the creation, or more like mass-production of his art.
Murakami is often considered to be a pop artist because of his keen interest in popular culture, particularly that of his birth country of Japan. Pop art’s main goal is to bridge the divide between art and everyday life, bringing everyday life into the art world and vice versa. Murakami has indeed succeeded in bridging this gap with the production of his countless mass-produced consumer products which include t-shirts and mousepads. The Murakami founded Hiropon factory is essential to the production of these various goods as well as the creation, or more like mass-production of his art.
Murakami and Kaikai Kiki Co.
Murakami’s methods as an artist share many similarities with those of the late pop artist Andy Warhol, whose influence on the art world is immeasurable. He works in a Warholian technique which involves employing many assistants to aid in the making of his certainly not one-of-a-kind artworks. As was emphasized in Andy Warhol’s factory, an original hand-created piece of art was not valuable to the artist. Though Murakami does often supervise his assistants, like Warhol, he rarely does any of the painting himself. Murakami is the founder of Kaikai Kiki Co. which was originally a way to manage his many assistants, however it has evolved to become a collaborative of like-minded artists.
The lack of importance placed on one-of-a-kind artworks within Takashi Murakami’s art practice is significant to his being a pop artist. As aforementioned, pop art was and is inherently interested in bridging the gap between high/fine art and commercial/low culture. If an artwork is replicated, or in this case mass-produced, it loses its value and becomes less expensive, and thus more accessible to the greater public. Another characteristic of Murakami’s art is its plastic-like and flat surface, which has been named “Superflat.” Superflat describes art which is purposefully two-dimensional and lacking depth or perspective. However, Superflat can also be attributed to this blurring of the boundaries between high and low culture and art.
Murakami’s methods as an artist share many similarities with those of the late pop artist Andy Warhol, whose influence on the art world is immeasurable. He works in a Warholian technique which involves employing many assistants to aid in the making of his certainly not one-of-a-kind artworks. As was emphasized in Andy Warhol’s factory, an original hand-created piece of art was not valuable to the artist. Though Murakami does often supervise his assistants, like Warhol, he rarely does any of the painting himself. Murakami is the founder of Kaikai Kiki Co. which was originally a way to manage his many assistants, however it has evolved to become a collaborative of like-minded artists.
The lack of importance placed on one-of-a-kind artworks within Takashi Murakami’s art practice is significant to his being a pop artist. As aforementioned, pop art was and is inherently interested in bridging the gap between high/fine art and commercial/low culture. If an artwork is replicated, or in this case mass-produced, it loses its value and becomes less expensive, and thus more accessible to the greater public. Another characteristic of Murakami’s art is its plastic-like and flat surface, which has been named “Superflat.” Superflat describes art which is purposefully two-dimensional and lacking depth or perspective. However, Superflat can also be attributed to this blurring of the boundaries between high and low culture and art.
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| "Flower Ball" by Takashi Murakami |
"My Lonesome Cowboy"
Alternatively, Takashi Murakami’s Japanese contemporary art is certainly not being sold on the cheap. Though less well-known than his happy cartoon-like characters, Murakami’s less popular art is not to be ignored. His 1988 larger-than-life sculpture "My Lonesome Cowboy," which depicts an aroused male, was sold in 2008 for an astonishing $15.2 million at Sotheby’s in New York. Though many at the auction were surprised at this sale, Murakami commented to his art dealer “Oh, it’s not surprising.”
Many lowbrow urban artists affiliated with Thumbprint Gallery are largely influenced by Murakami’s Japanese contemporary art. Elements of his style are witnessed in contemporary urban artworks by EZ Rock and Surge.
Visit Thumbprint Gallery's online store to see works by more urban artists.
Sources
http://www.notablebiographies.com/news/Li-Ou/Murakami-Takashi.html#b
http://www.picassomio.com/takashi-murakami.html
http://english.kaikaikiki.co.jp/artists/list/C4/
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.11/artist.html
http://www.vulture.com/2008/05/takashi_murakami_watches_from.html
http://www.takashimurakami.net/index.php?/site/biography/
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-11/-scary-art-market-overprices-my-works-says-takashi-murakami-interview.html
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