Blurring the Line Between Commercial and Traditional Art

Commercial art, often overlooked as actual art, can be seen everywhere. Whether it is product placement in movies/shows, billboards, or album covers, commercial art proves to be the key to improving sales of a product. The article “Takashi Murakami – Murakami Versailles”, by Jina Valentine, discusses Murakami’s work and how it has blurred the line between commercial and traditional art. Such confusion of the separation worries artists and those trying to keep the two completely separate. Much of his work identifies as having inappropriate patterns that come in conflict with traditional art, specifically with the era of Louis XIV, by manipulating minor details.

Murakami agreed with the Art Asian Pacific that his art sometimes gave the notion of a party crasher, but he also argued that his work gave meaning to many old paintings that marble statues could and cannot give. An example of this can be seen in the Oval Buddha Silver, where a five-foot tall silver figure by Murakami stands dead center in one of Salon de l'Abondance’s paintings. The statue seems out of place with the majestic trims and frescoed ceiling type parts within the painting. But to Murakami, the statue is an entrance into a new style and meaning of art; one that uses both traditional and modern aspects integrated together. Tongari, an eight-meter statue positioned at the center of a lotus flower stands in front of Apothese d’Hercule (Apotheosis of Hercules). The meaning and interpretation of this positioning is up to the viewer. Some think Tongari either represents as being banned from heaven or sent there as a representative. These are just two examples given by Valentine that introduce a new figure into a traditional painting, changing the meaning of the piece.

Takashi Murakami’s most famous character is Mr. DoB, which can be altered by changing its colors and facial expressions into millions of variations. Mr. DOB can be seen in many of Murakami’s works; in several pieces his signature character is used as the statue in more traditional pieces, causing commotion of whether he has degraded the traditional piece or enriched it. Mr. DOB is usually a two-dimensional animal like character with big ears. Looking at traditional pieces with Mr. DOB centered in the middle confuses many viewers, but Murakami believes placing such an out of the ordinary figure enhances each piece, giving it a completely new meaning and interpretation. Mr. DoB gives a sense of modernism and antiqueness to art.

Because of Murakami’s adverse work, exhibitions of his work in France have been banned. Some traditionalist groups believe such patterns within traditional pieces are an insult to the art of Louis’s era. But Valentine states that Takashi Murakami’s work generates a lot of intrigue through the use of the 17th and 18th century eccentric line effects, making art merge into “unnatural environments”. Traditional art fills much of the art world and it is time to create new pieces that no one has done before. Many of his pieces, however, are said to have balance between object and setting as well as coldness and warmth at the same time. Balance and setting is crucial when placing figures in unnatural environments. The coldness comes from the modern mass-production of his characters, while the warmth comes from the “obscene cuteness” and “semblance to ubiquitous, mass-produced toys” which remind us of childhood memories. Takashi Murakami’s work has created up stir, but it is time that other artists become more creative and begin creating pieces that cause people to ask questions and be captivated at first sight.