Takashi Murakami's rise to fame and fortune as one of the world's most influential contemporary artists has been a bittersweet ride. Praise and criticism have followed him throughout. Praise, for boldly combining Japanese manga, anime, subculture and kawaii themes in shocking, satirical and skillfully executed paintings and sculptures. Criticism, for his astronomical art-market prices, shameless commercialization, and factory-style production methods. more...
A First for Japan: Shunga at the Eisei-Bunko Museum
Michael Pronko
Japanese culture has long had an ambivalent relationship with erotic art, loving it secretly, but never exhibiting it openly. A current exhibition, titled Shunga (literally "spring pictures," a long-standing Japanese euphemism for erotic paintings), has overcome a number of restrictions to present a phenomenal display of hand-painted works and ukiyo-e woodblock prints from the Edo period (1603-1867). more...
Realm of the Senses: The Kankaku Museum
Alan Gleason
Sitting on the edge of the Miyagi Plain at the foot of the Ou Mountains in northeastern Honshu, the town of Iwadeyama is a bit off the beaten tourist track. People on their way to Naruko, a popular hot springs resort further up the road, generally pass through here without a second look. That's a shame, because Iwadeyama is home to one of Japan's, if not the world's, most entertaining museums. more...
