Takashi Murakami
Tokyo, Japan
“In 1994 I went to study in New York and was drawn to the large scale of, and the sense of freedom, in the ubiquitous graffiti. I never lost my interest in graffiti since, but I went back to Japan. Since meeting MADSAKI four years ago on Instagram, he has taught me how to use spray cans and introduced me to his friends snipe1 and TENGA one, leading us to do various collaborative projects. I think we truly managed to express ourselves freely with this work. I am so grateful.”
~ Takashi Murakami
Takashi Murakami (born in Tokyo, Japan, 1962) is the originator of the “Superflat” theory and the artist most associated with its tenets. He has maintained a multifaceted career as an artist, curator, collector, film and animation director, and the founder of Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd., an art production and management company that includes production studios and galleries. He is also known for cross-border collaborations with brands such as Louis Vuitton and VANS, as well as with notable artists including Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, and Virgil Abloh. Recent exhibitions include © MURAKAMI, Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (2007; traveled to Brooklyn Museum, New York; Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt; and Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, through 2009); Takashi Murakami Versailles, Château de Versailles, France (2010); Murakami-Ego, Qatar Museum Authority, Doha (2012); Murakami: The 500 Arhats, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo (2015); Takashi Murakami. Under the Radiation Falls, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow (2017); and The Octopus Eats Its Own Leg, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (2017; traveled to Vancouver Art Gallery in 2018 and opening at Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas, in 2018).