Exhibition Report: Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art "Takashi Murakami Mononoke Kyoto"

[Approx. 4,800 characters, approx. 65 photos]
Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art I visited the "Takashi Murakami Mononoke Kyoto" exhibition currently being held there. Here are my thoughts.

To start with the conclusion: 1) Since it is a solo exhibition of Takashi Murakami with over 90% new and large-scale works, it is a must-see for contemporary art lovers, 2) there are many catchy works and photography is allowed, making it fun, 3) be careful not to forget to "appreciate" the art, and 4) it would have been even better if there were some concise ways to understand Takashi Murakami's ideas and "Superflat" concept.

▶︎ Reason for visiting

Takashi Murakami is a figure so famous in the global contemporary art scene that he needs no introduction, originating from Japan. As someone who loves contemporary art, I have seen his works in various places in the past and read his books. I was interested in his personality and ideas, as he challenges contemporary art and seeks to criticize and reform Japan's Ancien Régime.

You can see the "Aun Statues" without paying admission. Since both the works and the walls are flashy, it is perfect as a photo spot.

This was my first time entering the "Higashiyama Cube" at the Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art. It seems "Higashiyama Cube" was built during the museum's 2020 renovation to introduce the contemporary cultural and artistic scene.

▶︎ 'Takashi Murakami Mononoke Kyoto' Impressions

The exhibition is characterized by being the first major solo exhibition by Takashi Murakami in Japan in eight years (and the first in a public museum in 23 years), featuring about 170 works including over 160 new works.

Many of the works were marked with a "New Work" label. This might be the first time I have seen the term "new work" in a solo exhibition caption. It seems that the large number of new works is a result of the deep relationship between Takashi Murakami and Mr. Shinya Takahashi, General Manager of the Project Planning and Promotion Office at the Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art.

The theme of the exhibition is a mix of Kyoto and the history as envisioned by Takashi Murakami, blended by Mr. Takahashi. It is said that 《Rakuchu Rakugai-zu Iwasa Matabei rip》 was also created at the request of Mr. Takahashi. The background and characteristics of the exhibition can be seen through the "new work" labels.

An interesting point about this exhibition is that there are multiple works by Takashi Murakami that are "notes" or "excuses" (will these "works" also be bought and sold in the future...?).

I don't know if he originally planned to make "excuse" works, or if he decided to make them because there were so many unfinished works. However, for me, they were very useful. This is because the artist's own words are more helpful than the words of curators or others.

Since new works that were not finished in time for the opening will be added throughout the exhibition period, I think you can enjoy it even if you visit multiple times.

There is a phrase in the "Notes" that left a particularly strong impression on me.

If you only see this exhibition once, it is highly likely that you will end up thinking it is just “Instagrammable, cute, interesting, and impressive.” Furthermore, Takashi Murakami holds the concept of “Superflat,” and everything starts from that concept.

In his book "SUPERFLAT," Takashi Murakami explains post-war Japan by connecting otaku culture and character culture with Japanese art history. In it, he speaks of “‘Art’ within Japanese culture, which has no high art, authority, circus, celebration, or caste.”

Also, in the same book, he mentions the idea that the positional relationship between fine art and popular art is flat, and refers to the uniformity of class in post-war society and Japanese society.

Takashi Murakami’s catchy works are impossible not to photograph. At this exhibition, there were so many photos I wanted to take that I could hardly move forward. All the visitors were happily taking pictures of the works.

However, I felt there was a negative side to this. Most of the visitors were absorbed in taking photos, and many were even taking commemorative pictures with the artworks in the background. Only a few people were focusing on appreciating the works by getting close to them to examine the matiere.

In that sense, seeing visitors enjoy Takashi Murakami's works—where classical art and otaku culture fuse—without any sense of incongruity within the museum might be one aspect of "Superflat," a realization that finally dawned on me as I "ruminated" on the exhibition.

Overall, while I felt satisfied seeing many of Takashi Murakami's new works, a feeling that something didn't quite click remained after seeing them just once.

I am basically in the camp of "if contemporary art is interesting, that's fine." However, Takashi Murakami does not just paint catchy and kawaii pictures; there is meticulous, deep thought and strategy behind them. I believe that by understanding these, one can gain more "interesting discoveries (=Eureka)."

Influenced by the upbeat atmosphere of the venue, my honest impression is that I didn't gain any particular insights inside the venue. The fact that there are many "dense" works might be one reason. Therefore, I felt it was a highly difficult exhibition.

Most visitors seemed to finish by saying "it was interesting" without "thinking." That frivolous atmosphere was also one of the reasons why it didn't click for me. I was able to gain some vague realizations after returning home and "ruminating" on it.

Therefore, it would have been better if there were efforts to explain Takashi Murakami's thoughts more carefully inside the venue. I think the "notes" and "excuse" works are wonderful initiatives. However, they are hard to read! 😵 They are handwritten-style, have too many colors, long horizontal strokes, no ruled lines... Many visitors were not reading them thoroughly.

I thought it would have helped visitors understand better if there had been a video (or an edited version of past interviews) of Takashi Murakami talking about this exhibition displayed near the exit.

By the way, in a dark room, a security guard told me, "Please turn off the camera's infrared light as it affects the artwork." The red light coming from the camera was an AF assist light (visible red light, not infrared). I didn't think it would affect the artwork, but even though I felt about 1mm annoyed, I followed the guard's instructions 😑

Takashi Murakami's merchandise was expensive as usual. For example, postcards were 240 yen, which is 1.5 to 2 times the price of a typical postcard. Takashi Murakami's works are costly to produce, and I heard they were hundreds of millions of yen short about two months before the exhibition, so I felt about 3mm convinced by the high prices.

Also, similar to the high merchandise prices, the admission fee of 2,200 yen was relatively high. Using hometown tax donations, students in Kyoto City or students commuting to schools in Kyoto City get free admission! That is a wonderful initiative.

Also, there was no paper exhibition list (I couldn't find one on the website either). This might be the first exhibition I've been to that didn't have a list. Is it because they can't manage it since the works are rotated?

▶︎Summary

What did you think? There are many catchy works, and since photography is allowed, I think it is simply fun. Also, as it is a large-scale exhibition that will go down in Takashi Murakami's history, it is a must-see for contemporary art lovers. However, I felt one needs to be careful not to get so obsessed with taking photos that they neglect the "viewing" experience. By "ruminating" on it after returning home, I was able to deepen my understanding of "Superflat" a little bit, and I wanted to learn more about Takashi Murakami.

▶︎Today's Museum Meal