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Investigation in Layering: Takashi Murakami

 Layering:


Takashi Murakami


Takashi Murakami utilizes layering to, in his own words, mix “Japanese subculture and Western art history.” When it appears in his work, he hides meaning within the mixture of art and its themes.

The collaborative painting by Takashi Murakami and Virgil Abloh titled Material Too

uses the American flag as a base with iconography from both respective artists. The tempering of the American flag can be seen as blasphemous or inappropriate, but the piece serves as a critique on what is and is not good art. This work combines a traditional piece of American art with the abstract and modern imagery from Japanese subcultures. Murakami and Abloh, layering one atop the other, opens up a discussion on the future of art.

Another piece by the duo, titled Glance Past the Future, uses the same idea as Material Too. A traditional portrait, appearing similar to portraits common during the Renaissance period, is the background to bright pink, grunge drawings. The traditional background is black and white, making it seem as a part of the past, older than the period it would have been created in. The eyes gaze past the pink drawings, at the fourth wall. The title then comes to mind: Glance Past the Future. With both the use of layering and a clever title, Murakami and Abloh introduce their new, abstract, Japanese-inspired art as “the future.”

  Another collaborative piece, this time featuring fellow Japanese artist MADSAKI, Flowers A Beige, layers “happy” flowers over top a collage of skulls. The flowers are a spin of Murakami’s signature flowers. MADSAKI, known to take classic art pieces such as the Mona Lisa and paint over it, uses his signature style to give the happy flowers a twisted appearance. A false smile appears on the flowers’ face while their eyes reveal sorrow. The background of skulls potentially answers the question as to what the flowers are hiding and why. The piece sends off a message of concealing and compensation, hiding unspeakable horrors under a sunny disposition. Both being Japanese, it could relate to any (or all) events of mass death to the population and how both the country and its citizens attempt to cover up their dark moments in history.


What have you learned about layering?


I learned that layering is taking one image, sometimes a traditional work of art, and placing another one on top. This is usually used to say something deeper about a certain subject or art as a whole. It could be just drawing on top of another drawing, or multiple drawings on top of a photograph. It is very broad in how it can be performed, leading to variance between artists as well as within one artist’s portfolio.


How do contemporary artists use the concept of layering in their artwork?


Contemporary artists use layering oftentimes as a critique on the world around them or the nature of historical events. They tell stories, and with the aid of technology, are able to tell them in a variety of ways. Whether it is using a projection to add depth or using photoshop to edit digitally, layering appears in different ways for different reasons.


How might you be able to use layering in your own art?


I could use classical pieces and draw on top of them. I would probably want to deliver either a political message, whether revolving around a specific point in history or just to say something about the value put over traditional art. Specifically, I would highlight an aspect of whatever my topic is by redirecting or uncovering the “truth” behind a certain piece.



Is there something that you found in your investigation that specifically interested or inspired you?

The Glance Past the Future painting by Murakami and Abloh is very interesting to me. I like that it is a subtle piece where both the artworks are kind of concealed, but the layering is still obvious. On its own, it looks nice, but when considering the name of the piece, it gets this added value. I like how these artists said a lot about their viewpoint on the art industry through layering.



Works Used (in Order of Appearance):

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