Wk 11 — Artist OTW — Student Choice

Tony Ramirez

Art 110

Artist Essay

Art has never been something I could honestly get interested with. One artist whose work has caught my eye is Takashi Murakami. Born February 1, 1962, in Tokyo, Japan, he was very interested in anime and magna (Japanese comics). He is a contemporary artist that touches in painting and sculptures, along with fashion merchandise and animation. He has gone far enough to make his own company which he manages many artists.

A lot of Murakami’s work shows vibrant colors that pop out. I feel his art tends to bring a happy and electrifying feel. His work varies and he has made multiple collaborations with other artist, even some from different art categories. A popular collaboration he has was with Louis Vuitton, and many people would probably recognize his collaboration on Kanye West’s album cover for Graduation. One of my favorite works of Murakami’s is his “Flowers blooming in the World and the Land of Nirvana.” It is made of vibrant colors and his flower can be repeatedly seen throughout many of his other works.

Takashi Murakami approached art with a different style and understanding. “Murakami was dissatisfied with the state of contemporary art in Japan,” he thought that there were “deep appropriation of western trends.” His art gave him a different approach that changed the Japanese culture a bit. His art form became known as superflat, he adds a mixture of “cute”, “psychedelic”, and “satirical”. These artistic creations gave Murakami a new style to add to the world of art. In addition, he came into the art game and created a new look and inspired many other artists.

I truthfully like the style and new look Murakami brought into art. The bright colors and different styles gave me more of an interest in art, and molded a new respect for art. I began to start looking into other artists when my friend showed me some of Murakami’s art. One of my favorite artists is Kaws, whom I would’ve never looked into or found if it wasn’t for my interest in Takashi. I like the way Takashi was able to normalize and bring more attention to the use of bright vibrant colors in art. These simple traits add to the uniqueness of his art and will continue to make him, what I believe, one of the top artists of my decade.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takashi_Murakami#Academic_background_and_early_career