After being organized and exhibited at the MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) in Los Angeles, ©Murakami opens at the Brooklyn Museum on April 5, 2008. The expansive retrospective on Japanese Pop Artist, Takashi Murakami will run through July 13, 2008. The exhibit shows a broad range of mediums utilized by Murakami and his Kaikai Kiki team in the time span between 1991 and 2008. Chief Curator from the MOCA, Paul Schimmel, aided in transforming two floors of the Brooklyn Museum into a vibrant, colorful world for Murakami’s characters to feel at home.


In the press conference, Murakami spoke of the great efforts of his team to prepare for the MOCA show as well as the exhibition in Brooklyn. Paul Schimmel speaks to the “©” aspect and identity of the artist and the works.

Schimmel states, “It is the co-mingling of different cultures that is so central to his practices that copyright and the notion of the ownership of identity seem to be more important than any single object.”



One controversial (and highlighted) aspect of the show is the addition of a fully operational Louis Vuitton store within the natural flow of the exhibit. Murakami teamed up with Louis Vuitton under the artistic direction of Marc Jacobs to create a monogram + camouflage donned special limited edition series.

“Our collaboration has produced a lot of works and has been a huge influence and inspiration to many. It has been and continues to be a monumental marriage of art & commerce. The ultimate cross-over, one for both the fashion and art history books,” comments Marc Jacobs.

Though the exhibit has a wealth of visual information, the exhibition catalog fills in the blanks. The book, ©Murakami, organized by Paul Schimmel, serves as a contemporary overview of Japanese pop culture and Takashi Murakami’s process and inspiration.



Flower Mantango, 2001 – 2006


I open wide my eyes but see no scenery. I fix my gaze upon my heart, 2007



And Then And Then And Then And Then (Red), 1996 (left), 727, 1996 (right)



DoB Strange Forest, 1999


When the show leaves New York, it will then travel to the Museum für Moderne Kunst in Frankfurt, Germany. In 2009, ©Murakami will be at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Bilbao, Spain.