Why is the Jellyfish Eyes collection important?

As well as merging influences from the East and West in his art, Murakami also successfully blurs the boundary between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture in his art, celebrating popular culture and demanding that the popular be considered a worthy subject of fine art. Influences from popular or ‘low’ culture, such as anime and manga, are evident in Murakami’s prints, especially in the cartoon characters in the Jellyfish Eyes collection. A notable print in the collection, Jellyfish Eyes, Simon In The Strange Forest, features a cartoon boy and his dog, surrounded by psychedelic eyes. The print takes the appearance of an image from a comic book or graphic novel and the fact that it is a limited-edition print which comes in an edition size of 300, showcases how Murakami is able to elevate the popular into the realm of fine art.

How do I buy a Jellyfish Eyes print?

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How can I sell my Jellyfish Eyes print?

If you're looking to sell art by Takashi Murakami, click the link and we can help. We employ a number of techniques and practices in order to give a realistic and achievable valuation on any art listed on myartbroker.com. We analyse the demand for the work in question, take into consideration previous sales and auction valuations, we assess the current gallery valuation and monitor the current deals taking place via MyArtBroker every day. We regularly advise sellers on a price bracket for their artwork completely free of charge.

Jellyfish Eyes by Takashi Murakami Background & Meaning

Jellyfish
Eyes

Jellyfish Eyes is a collection of prints by Japanese contemporary artist, Takashi Murakami. The psychedelic quality of Murakami’s work shines through in these prints, which are composed of untethered cartoon eyes rendered in bright colours. Murakami draws inspiration from Japanese popular culture, especially the "otaku" subculture of anime, manga, and computers.

Meaning & Analysis

Jellyfish Eyes is a collection of prints produced by the Japanese contemporary artist, Takashi Murakami. The prints, all of which feature cartoon eyes rendered in bright colours, capture the essence of Murakami’s unique visual language, which is characterised by the use of bold colours, the incorporation of graphic motifs such as smiling flowers and cartoon characters and an emphasis on flat and glossy surfaces. Murakami’s style is often described as psychedelic and is deeply influenced by Japanese popular culture, especially the ‘otaku’ subculture which is associated with computers, anime and manga as well as ‘kawaii’ culture, the culture of cuteness.

The Jellyfish Eyes collection reflects Murakami’s love for popular culture and desire to incorporate it into his artworks.

Murakami has a surprisingly traditional artistic background. The artist studied ‘nihonga’, traditional Japanese painting, at the prestigious Tokyo University of Fine Arts and Music. Not only did Murakami obtain a Bachelor of Fine Arts, but he also went on to receive a Master of Fine Arts and a PhD, which he completed in 1993. Despite this traditional training, the artist had long been fascinated by anime and manga, (Japanese cartoons and comics) and aspired to work in animation.

Soon after completing his PhD, Murakami decided to pursue his interests in Japanese popular culture and animation, distancing himself from the traditional art world and instead began experimenting with contemporary art styles and different medias. 1994 was a pivotal year for Murakami as he received a fellowship from the Asian Cultural Council which enabled him to participate in the PS1 International Studio Program in New York City. In New York, Murakami was exposed to a range of contemporary artists and their works, such as Anselm Kiefer and Jeff Koons. Their Western style influenced Murakami’s own visual language and it is thanks to the time Murakami spent in New York that the artist is credited with being able to fuse Eastern and Western artistic techniques in his artworks.

As well as merging influences from the East and West in his art, Murakami also successfully blurs the boundary between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture in his art, celebrating popular culture and demanding that the popular be considered a worthy subject of fine art. Influences from popular or ‘low’ culture, such as anime and manga, are evident in Murakami’s prints, especially in the cartoon characters in the Jellyfish Eyes collection. A notable print in the collection, Jellyfish Eyes, Simon In The Strange Forest, features a cartoon boy and his dog, surrounded by psychedelic eyes. The print takes the appearance of an image from a comic book or graphic novel and the fact that it is a limited-edition print which comes in an edition size of 300, showcases how Murakami is able to elevate the popular into the realm of fine art.
The Jellyfish Eyes collection also captures Murakami’s ‘superflat’ style. The prints were made shortly after Murakami developed his superflat theory which he published in 2000 in the catalogue for a group exhibition of the same name that he curated for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. Murakami argues that there is a legacy of flat, two-dimensional imagery from Japanese art history in manga and anime. He contrasts this style to Western art which privileges depth and texture. As well as commenting on Japanese aesthetics, Murakami’s theory also applies to post-war Japanese society, as the artist posits that differences in social class and taste have flattened, meaning there is little distinction between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture. Murakami’s combination of popular culture icons which he renders using fine art techniques and sells for large sums of money captures this diminishing distinction.
If you're looking to sell art by Takashi Murakami, click the link and we can help. We employ a number of techniques and practices in order to give a realistic and achievable valuation on any art listed on myartbroker.com. We analyse the demand for the work in question, take into consideration previous sales and auction valuations, we assess the current gallery valuation and monitor the current deals taking place via MyArtBroker every day. We regularly advise sellers on a price bracket for their artwork completely free of charge.