B orn in Tokyo (1962), Murakami grew up with manga and anime, but also under the great influ- ence of ancient Japanese graph- ics. He is celebrated for having succeed- ed in incorporating the tradition of this two-dimensional drawing into the prac- tice ofWestern creativity under the‘Super- flat’ concept, which has grown into an ar- tistic movement in its own right. With the creation of his virtual alter ego, his own pop icon, Mr DOB, and many variations of this large-headed character, applying these motifs to stuffed toys and t-shirts, he has managed to unify popular culture with that which is considered high art. Murakami believes in the synergy of groups, which is why he heads the Hiro- pon Factory workshop that produces pic- tures, sculptures and prints based on the poetics of Japanese comic strips. When it comes to the audience of the October Sa- lon, he will surprise and regale them, but also force them to think about the similar- ities between the human face and the for- ests of overgrown hills in the work “Daru- ma the Great”, displayed in the Gallery of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. The shine of this piece isn’t provided on- ly by the platinum tiles permeated with acrylic paints on canvas, but also the spir- it that exudes from this man-mountain. Your work abounds with a cacopho- ny of expressions; where do you draw inspiration from, besides manga and anime? - I create something like artwork day after day in order to escape from such anx- ieties. Boredom is one of the great enemies of creative activity, and I keep looking for various motifs in order not to get bored. So, while you might imagine a creative pro- cess in which an artist joyfully seeks his motifs, the reality is that I’m in such ago- ny that I desperately seek inspiration that would allow me to escape the torment. Does your life and art always bring you joy or do you turn sadness into joyful forms? What is the formula? - I would say that Picasso was an artist who gave form to joy, while Van Gogh and Munch embodied sorrow. In my case, more often than not I’m suffering and lament- ing life while I create. What’s the reason why you connect combine “pure” art with commercial, designed artefacts? - For example, if you think your child is adorable and you draw the child in your sketchbook, that act would be considered pure. If you think it turned out well, so you then paint it on canvas (in my case), would that creative act now become impure? When you are creating something with
Stvorio je svoj virtuelni alterego, sopstvenu pop- ikonu, Mr Doba He has created his virtual alter ego, his own pop icon, Mr DOB
guran sam da je ima, ali za mene je nikada nije bilo. Kako komercijalna kultura uti- če na savremenu umetnost? – Još od Vorhola ova tema je fun- damentalno pitanje. Bilo da na vas uti- če ili ne, nema dileme da je komerci- jalna kultura i da postoji. Mora da je sjajan osećaj stvara- ti nešto sasvim novo, poput ter- mina i izraza „superflat“, kada je sve već izmišljeno? – Kada sam započeo karijeru, da li je neko mogao debitovati kao savre- meni umetnik ili ne, zavisilo je od toga kako je pojedinac mogao da se plasira u Americi. Tada je japanski umetnik
bio krajnje nepotreban američkom i zapadnoevropskom svetu savremene umetnosti. Došao sam sa frazom su- perflat nakon očajničkih razmišljanja o načinu kako japansku modernu umet- nost učiniti relevantnom i neophod- nom kada je smatrana nedoslednom. Vaša umetnost emituje radost, ali skreće pažnju na ozbiljne fe- nomene modernog sveta, kao što je seksualni fetišizam. Da li ste sigurni da javnost to mo- že da razume? – U poređenju sa vremenom kada sam bio dete, značajno se pomerila li- nija koja se povlači između moralnog i nemoralnog. Mislim da će moralne
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