I’ve temporarily relocated to Mississippi, so over the next month(s?), I will largely focus on Mississippi artists. But before I do, I wanted to mention one of the last shows I saw in New York at Gagosian’s Chelsea gallery space. Ending October 24, the show unveils a new painting from Japanese artist Takashi Murakami and a solid body of sculptures from German artist Anslem Reyle.

Takashi Murakami received his PhD from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts in a traditional form of Japanese painting called Nihonga, but after becoming fascinated with Japanese and American pop-culture he began creating “poku” art. Poku references a blend of pop and otaku (creepily obsessive fandom) rooted in anime, manga, comics and fashion. His work could be regarded as kitsch—life-sized pornographic anime sculptures, embellished cartoonish “Superflat” paintings and vapid overpriced smiley-face daisies—but for all the overtly ridiculous and even uninspired Murakami, his catalogue also includes insightful work that demonstrates the paradox of Japanese culture—insular but susceptible, xenophobic but fascinated with the West. Through pastiche, Murakami examines the pathologies of Japanese society—idol-making, over-consumption and the tendency to internalize emotion or either escape via fantasy (such as costume-play). And as a sometimes self-declared okatu who works with Louis Vuitton on bags and rugs and founded the Hiropon Factory (where assistants make his paintings, an objective similar to that of Warhol’s), Murakami is an active participant in the culture he critiques. “In Japan there is no high and there is no low [art]. It’s all flat,” Murakami told Interview Magazine in March 2001. And although his popularity waxes and wanes in his home country, he is consistently regarded elsewhere. His resume includes a list of prestigious shows, among them the Guggenheim in Bilbao, the Brooklyn Museum, MOMA and MOCA.

 His piece at Gagosian is in his signature “Superflat” style, depicting the legend of Karajishi or “China lion,” a mythological beast that guards Japanese Buddhist temples. Entitled “A Picture of the Blessed Lion Who Stares at Death," the piece is huge (118 x 236 inches), taking up an entire wall and depicting a playful Karajishi and her cubs perched atop an arch of painstakingly rendered human skulls. Part caricature, part psychedelica and part unsettling juxtaposition, the piece is worth seeing if only for the sheer presence lent by its size and depth of color.

Also on display is Anslem Reyle’s “Monochrome Age,” a series of impressive, human-scale sculptures, including roughly a dozen chrome-covered straw-bales. The 39-year-old artist references distinct 20^th century trends such as post-modern minimalism and abstraction. The show is simultaneously vivid and static—reflective surfaces animate purposely plasticized, prototypal pieces by tossing around light and flow, echoing the movement in the surrounding environment and demanding viewer engagement. There’s something akin to graffiti wild-style in the splintering, sharp angles and industrial aesthetic of the framed pieces, while neon colors and shiny material presents an almost retro vision of the future. 

 *photos compliments of Gagosian Gallery and artcoll.blogspot.com