14. Takashi Murakami

Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist who works both in fine arts, such as painting but also in commercial media. When researching I found something that said he blends the boundaries of high and low art, and I think this is a good way of describing what he does. A great deal of his works has a pop culture feel and he uses a lot of bright and fun colors. Murakami will sometimes take something that is seen as popular in the Japanese culture and turn it into a large scale sculpture. He uses patterns in is work that are repeating throughout different works and one creation that shows up a lot in his work are these colorful smiling daisies. Murakami’s work can be seen on commercial products such as shoes and purses and he has even done work for Louis Vuitton. He is very skilled in painting and even his paintings, which may be seem as fine art feature great color but also glimpses of pop art.

 I like his work because it is fun and playful. I think that he plays well in to the pop-culture field and has obviously done some great works with poplar companies. I enjoy the bright colors in this work and the reoccurring themes. I have respect for his skill set and he is a talented painter. His work is fun and I enjoy the Japanese culture that shines through.