Time Bokan- Fatman Gold

Exhibited

Serpentine Gallery, London, Takashi Murakami, KaiKai KiKi, November 2002 to January 2003, original painting upon which this edition was based, was exhibited.

Villa Manin Centro d'arte Contemporanea, Undine, Infinite Painting: Contemporary Painting and Global Realism, April to September 2006, original painting upon which this edition was based, was exhibited.

34FineArt, Cape Town, Takashi Murakami: Limited/Unlimited, 14 November to 9 December 2006.

Notes

Born and raised in Tokyo, Japan, Takashi Murakami is renowned for his creations that blur the boundaries between fine and decorative art. Following the Superflat concept – a Postmodern art movement influenced by Manga and Anime – Murakami’s practice involves recontextualising elements of subcultural art and introducing them to the fine art market. His work draws inspiration from Japanese artistic traditions, cartoons, and comics.

Murakami graduated from the Tokyo University of Arts in 1988, majoring in Nihonga, a Japanese style of painting that typically uses mineral pigments, and occasionally ink, together with other organic pigments on silk or paper.¹ He was a recipient of the Asian Cultural Council scholarship, which exposed him to the work of Jeff Koons and ultimately led him to establish the Hiropon Factory, now known as KaiKai Kiki Co, Ltd. Murakami has collaborated with numerous celebrity icons and luxury brands, including Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, and Issey Miyake. His first retrospective exhibition was hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, and he has also exhibited his work at the Brooklyn Museum of Art and the Museum für Moderne Kunst in Frankfurt.

^1. No author (no date) Yamatane Museum of Art, What is Nihonga?, online, accessed 8 October 2025.

Provenance

34FineArt, Cape Town.

Private Collection.