Takashi Murakami has put his indelible stamp on art history, bringing to the international stage a representation of contemporary Japanese art unequaled in today's art world. Murakami's resistance to conformity has made him a presence in both the commercial world and that of high art, blending Western traditions of Pop art and marketing with graphic design of his homeland. Indeed, much of Murakami's success is owed to his singular genius as a global art marketeer, establishing his success in the West before redirecting his attention back to Japan. As means of appealing to widespread audiences, the signature elements in Murakami’s work focus on the commercial aspects of Japanese art, namely that of of anime and manga. But while both of these art forms had previously existed in a consumer culture, Murakami elevates his subects. His subjects are both cartoonish kitsch and the grotesque, appearing in their two-dimsensional origins but with Murakami's emphasis of bright color and manipulation of the subject's character.

The present lot, Untitled, 1997, serves as an early example of Murakami’s “Superflat” work, a term he coined to describe the flat, two-dimensional imagery customary in Japanese art that emphasizes surfaces and flat planes of color. As a term, "superflat" is Murakami's way of marrying high art and the commercialism, as both traditions embrace this particular style; hence, "superflat" is Murakami's great equalizer. Untitled, 1997, also displays similarities to older traditions of Japanese art: the curved lines that form the mad figure are themselves reminiscent of Japanese woodcuts, while the character itself evokes the fantastical creatures that made frequent appearances in the ancient paintings of Japan. But as opposed to the horrifying dragons and mythical beasts that dotted the halls of Medieval palaces, here we find an many-eyed grin that we cannot help but adore. All in all, Murakami has stepped beyond the commercial achievements of a contemporary pop artist and instead found himself at the center of a cross-cultural exchange of artistic values. The present lot is both old and new: a memory of the past, a symbol of the present, and a vision of the future.