Japanese Contemporary Art

I have found two contemporary Japanese fine artists that I found interesting and have included some screenshots of slides from the PowerPoint to use possibly later for reference.

Takashi Murakami known as, MR. is well-regarded for his illustrative, anime-inspired paintings and cartoonish sculptures. However, the Saitama-based creative resents the cutesy label often slapped upon his work. “From when I was around 13, my family had a rough time,” he admits. “Like with my older brother’s domestic violence.” (YouTube, 2018) The effect this turbulent upbringing had on MR.’s work is striking, considering the saccharine sweet designs that he often subverts with aggressive paint splashes and brush slashes.

As a teenager, he was obsessed with manga, video games & anime and was subsequently tagged as an “otaku,” a subset of Japanese culture primarily made up of young males who forfeit social skills for personal pastimes. “When I was a teenager, I thought ‘otaku’ was something embarrassing,” says MR. “I was embarrassed … that I was an otaku.(YouTube, 2018)” Eventually, however, “I started thinking that embarrassment could be a weapon … it is interesting to let that embarrassment [explode].” (YouTube, 2018)

Takashi Murakami is unquestionably the most famous artist in the world of Japanese contemporary art. He owes much of his success to hard work and a lack of sleep. “If I relax for more than six hours, I feel like I’m being extremely lazy and I have to get back to work. I can’t really relax,”(YouTube, 2018)  he told us. The relentless output of new works, sculptures, and exhibitions crafted by himself and his global team of 300 Kaikai Kiki Gallery assistants is driven by one simple dread: “I fear that people will get bored of me,” he said.(YouTube, 2018) Often Takashi is regarded as the Japanese andy warhol combining otaku culture with the fine art world, and collaborating with prominent mainstream western artists, one being Kanye West. This can be said for the artist Mr. who merges otaku culture with fine art and also collaborates with mainstream western artists, with the most recent case being Pharell Williams in a paris exhibition in 2017.

 References

YouTube. (2018). Mr. Is the Japanese Artist Who Helped Turn Anime Into Fine Art. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrlpnfcI5qQ [Accessed 23 Aug. 2019].

YouTube. (2018). Takashi Murakami Short Film: Is This the Dream?. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tctYxA43hFg [Accessed 23 Aug. 2019].

YouTube. (2017). Takashi Murakami. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YPOWBQAd1M [Accessed 23 Aug. 2019].