Flower family

Kitsch in gold is still kitsch.

Has Flower Parent beheaded the other kids?

Haha, been following Takashi Murakami since the Superflat days. Love all the critics here. Art comes in many guises, you don't have to like it, but the guy is a creative genius.

That may be the uglyist thing I've ever seen outside a war zone.

Art is subjective. He happens to be a very famous Japanese artist. I think it is amazing!

That may be the uglyist thing I've ever seen outside a war zone.

What a sad comment, artists are the saviors of the world.

artists are the saviors of the world

If they produce something beautiful. This thing is shiny, yes, but beautiful? The face of this monstrosity can scare the hell out of kids. Very fitting pair to the horrible Spider sculpture, also near the entrance of the Roppongi Hills.

Mickelicious

Has Flower Parent beheaded the other kids?

A great observation. Everything artist makes has a meaning or two. If you are familiar with Murakami's works, you find full of cheerful colors and smiling faces but at the same time you find reflections of contemporary social realities, which are often dark or superficial, and helpless. On the surface, in this sculpture too, you see flowers and smiling faces - apparent happiness - but you see also a single parent and a one child painted in gold color, which obviously represents wealth. We may be wealthier, but look what we lost!

I am happy to see that there are some people able to appreciate art in all its variety. Like it or not, Murakami is a world renowned artist in the league of Andy Warhol, for example. Of course, critics of this work probably don't like artistic soup cans either, haha.

Good observations, zichi! Thanks!

Perhaps one further thought about their relative pricings at auction might be that Warhol's work is older and has therefore had longer to appreciate in value. Warhol's output is now complete and there will be no more, so anyone wanting to own one must compete in that finite market. Murakami is still working and there will hopefully be more to come.

But I do appreciate all our thoughts very much. You obviously know what you are talking about!

I saw this the other day. Didn't really think much of it. Just another giant anime sculpture tourist trap. Its literally 50ft away from Louis Bourgeios's Maman spider sculpture. Less terrifying I guess.

Art in Japanese is 美術, the technique of the beautiful.

If it ain't beautiful, it ain't art.

This ain't beautiful.

As mu-da points out, kitsch in gold is still kitsch.

I google-imaged Takashi Murakami and it seems he certainly likes his smiley daisy motifs. It seems this is just more of the same, but shiny.

cleo... all I will say in response is the old cliche, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder". Not a Japanese proverb but then, Murakami is primarily appreciated outside the borders of Japan :)

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and my eye sees tacky, shiny and tasteless.

I don’t quite see why we have to have “public art” inflicted on us at our expense, but having no say in the expenditure? Usually chosen by self appointed “experts”. Why not let those paying decide what is put up. Have a rotation of pieces chosen by the paying public.

If you have not seen Murakmi's works before, I recommend to check out one of his earlier works called "My Lonesome Cowboy" (1998) and compare it with this new "Flower Parent and Child". You will realize what connects these two, old and new, sculptures - a serious Japanese social problem but in usual Murakami's comical ways.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Lonesome_Cowboy

zichi

The highest price for a Warhol is $40 million.

The price of a Takashi Murakami is $2 million.

Murakami's "My Lonesome Cowboy" is $15.1 million.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Lonesome_Cowboy

Murakami produced three casts plus two artist's proofs of My Lonesome Cowboy, with the hair of the figure being of different colors in each of the casts. In 2008, the fourth numbered edition of My Lonesome Cowboy sold at an auction by Sotheby's for USD $15.1 million, nearly four times the amount at which it was valued. At the time, the sale made Murakami one of the most expensive living artists in the world.

If you have not seen Murakmi's works before, I recommend to check out one of his earlier works called "My Lonesome Cowboy" (1998)

Had a look. Three-dimensional anime-inspired tat.

You will realize what connects these two, old and new, sculptures

Manga? Hardly a 'serious Japanese problem', but a long way from serious art. Not something I'd want to spend very long looking at, certainly not something I would want to decorate my living room with.

cleo

Manga?

Yes. A serious one. It's displaying a serious Japanese social problem in comical way.

If you do not see it, you might be an blind.

It's displaying a serious Japanese social problem in comical way.

It's displaying a spikey-haired naked figure, masturbating. Not so much comical as gross. In the privacy of one's own home, not a problem. On display and declared to be 'art' - that's the problem.

Socreteos, had a look. Not art, tacky manga inspired pornography masquerading as art.

Tacky art doesn’t generally age well. Hope this doesn’t last longer than a few decades.