The Astrup Fearnley Museum in Oslo, Norway is now presenting a solo exhibition of the world-famous Japanese artist Takashi Murakami (b. 1962, Tokyo).
The exhibition will not only feature his artworks, but will also present aspects of his activities as a collector, gallerist, businessman, and activist. Takashi Murakami is the originator of the “Superflat” Theory and the artist most associated with its tenets.
In the last twenty years, Murakami has been extremely visible on the international art scene, but he has also taken an active role in Japan, redefining the position of the artist through his involvement in different arenas of society.
In this exhibition, Astrup Fearnley will concentrate on two periods in Murakami’s artistic development. It explores the phenomenon that is Takashi Murakami from a number of different angles. There will be works from the late 1990s related to his creation of the figure ‘DOB’ and the notion of ‘Super flat,’ which place him within the legacy of Pop art but with an exceptionally original artistic language.
Murakami has maintained a multifaceted career as an artist, curator, collector, film director, and the founder of Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. In recent years Murakami has developed an intelligent personal dialogue with Japanese historical paintings. A special room will be dedicated to his films and TV series.
As a curator, Murakami organized a trilogy of exhibitions, beginning with SUPERFLAT ( which traveled from Parco Gallery, Shibuya to MOCA, Los Angeles and other museums) and continuing with Coloriage (Fondation Cartier pour l’Art Contemporain), and Little Boy (NY Japan Society), the last of which was awarded the prize for Best Thematic Show by the US of the International Association of Art Critics.
The Astrup Fearnley exhibition will also present an insight into Murakami’s impressive art collection through an ‘exhibition within the exhibition’ featuring antique Japanese ceramics and painted scrolls, curated by Murakami himself, as well as works by other artists and those whom he has discovered or promoted. In addition, there will be an important selection of his merchandising, which Murakami, more than any other artist, has developed, produced and propelled into the art world,
which normally he exhibits in his Kaikai Kiki Gallery, which he founded in 2008.
Curators: Gunnar B. Kvaran and Therese Möllenhoff
In 2016, the first episode of the original anime series 6HP (Six Hearts Princess) was aired on TV. Murakami is currently preparing to release a new live action feature film, Jellyfish Eyes 2.
Every Thursday there will be a screening of Murakami’s feature film Jellyfish Eyes (2013) at the museum. Click here for more details.
The exhibition runs through 14 May.
The exhibition is supported by The Japanese Foundation.
First Time Exhibit by Controversial Japanese Artist in Scandinavia, written by Tor Kjolberg