nara vs murakami

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Yoshitomo Nara and Takashi Murakami are two very different but, also very remarkable individuals, which devoted their lives to being famous Japanese animation artists. Nara is the animation artist for the famous 1999 “Ukiyoe”; a warm colored picture with a single, mysterious child in the center. Murakami is the animation artist for the 1998 “The Castle of Tin Tin”; a creative, colorful tower of creatures, starting at the bottom small then, increases in size, as the creatures are stacked. Together, both works are similar since, they are a part of Japanese pop culture. However, they differ in many stylistic components. The two works of animation differ in forms and how they relate to the artist but; are similar in their iconography (meaning) and the cultural statement behind them.
The two works greatly differ in form that the characters are expressing but, similar in the method used to create them. Nonetheless, Nara and Murakami have similar visions. Together Nara and Murakami used a variety of materials and methods. Murakami created a postmodern art movement called superflat, which was influenced by manga. Manga are animated comics either made in Japan or by a Japanese person, matching a style generated in late 19th century Japan. Superflat was used to describe both “Ukiyoe” and “The Castle of Tin Tin” because; they are both flattened methods of Japanese pop art. Lunning states, “… connections made by Murakami and others between the early modern Edo era and contemporary Superflat culture as seen for example in the “Ukiyoe” print of Nara Yoshitomo.” (Lunning 93) Since both works are very different in appearance, it means superflat covers very different looks of art. Murakami shows superflat in a sexual way sometimes with unrecog...

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...ashi Murakami are two world round, miraculous artists. They put immense amounts of detail and contemplation into their work, which makes the meaning behind them so special. There vast sense of pride for there country, Japan, has influenced their work. I believe it made them better artists because they used their passion for their country to create “Ukiyoe” and “The Castle of Tin Tin” two works with a powerful meaning. With “Ukiyoe’s” innocent yet demented child to “The Castle of Tin Tin’s” cute, yet devilish creatures the form and symbols could not be more different. It is shocking the talent that both artists require to have created such very different images yet, representing the exact same iconography (meaning) behind it, a resilient and powerful Japan. It truly expresses the impact and significance that remarkable artists can put behind there artistic creations.

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