Murakami's work at Palace of Versailles - Thoughts?

Japanese artist Takashi Murakami has filled 15 rooms at the Palace of Versailles with his first major retrospective in France. 22 of Murakami's eye-catching works go on show in the salons and gardens of Versailles, more than 11,000 people have signed petitions claiming the show is degrading and disrespectful. Royalist activists, convinced it is also illegal, have protested outside the palace gates.

The objections to the exhibition, which comes two years after a similar venture by US artist Jeff Koons sparked a torrent of criticism, are rooted in the supposed incongruity of inviting Murakami's outlandish – some say pornographic – art into the 17th century surroundings of the Sun King's palace.

"The little boy with pointed genitals whose jet of sperm forms a lasso, the big-breasted little girl whose jet of milk forms a skipping rope have no place in the royal chambers," said Anne Brassié, one of the authors of the Versailles Mon Amour petition.

via Guardian

How do you feel about Murakami's work displayed at Versailles?

Tags: Murakami, Palace, Versailles, at, of

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Permalink Reply by sAm on September 10, 2010 at 5:15pm

It does seem out of place, which is probably the desired affect. Not so sure about sperm and boob milk, but I like Murakami in general.

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Permalink Reply by alice on September 17, 2010 at 4:09pm

I agree with you, it's out of place...but maybe that's why it's so thought-provoking and interesting. I also draw the line, however, on projectile liquids.

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Permalink Reply by Red on September 11, 2010 at 2:58am

I know art is in the eye of the beholder, but IMO, sticking that cartoonish figure amid gilded walls and reliefs and the palace art, is kind of a joke. If I were lucky enough to see the palace of Versailles and that plasticy crap was there, I'd be irked.

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Permalink Reply by alice on September 17, 2010 at 4:11pm

Thanks for your comment, Red. But couldn't we also see it as a bonus? Not only do you get to experience the Palace of Versailles, you get to see Murakami's crazy art.

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Permalink Reply by Red on September 17, 2010 at 10:25pm

Hi Alice. Well, I'm sure a lot of people could see that as a bonus if they are fans of that type of art, but speaking only for myself, I would find it too distracting. I probably should have said it that way in my earlier comment, rather than blasting it like I did. I'm a bit on the direct side and that doesn't come off too well in type. :) I apologize for that. I don't have an opinion on Murukami's style except in the context of it being among a setting such as Versaiiles.

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Permalink Reply by grace on September 17, 2010 at 10:52am

I think that this exhibition (which is cool), should not be an installation at Versailles.

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Permalink Reply by James Lynch on September 17, 2010 at 3:55pm

i agree, its interesting art, but really doesn't work for me in this context.

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Permalink Reply by Amy Wong on September 18, 2010 at 9:22am

Wow....those sperm and boob text sound graphic! I too think it's out of place. :\

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Permalink Reply by Jason Coulston on September 18, 2010 at 11:07am

That Murakami is provoking viewers and generating a negative response tells me that it's art. Like our Gottfried Helnwein photos that most people immediately and absolutely hate, I know the artist has created something worthy of consideration. The insanely ornate nature of Versailles fits perfect, in my opinion, with this hyper pop nature of Murakami's color-soaked imagery.

A+. This will certainly go down as 2010's most talked about and influential show.

Jason

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Permalink Reply by Nathan Gotlib on September 20, 2010 at 1:21am

Contemporary art, if we follow Nicholas Bourriaud's assumptions about us entering an age of Alter Modern (as in, Post Modernism is over), is all about merging the geographical boundaries and all that this would imply.

Having Murakami's work in a venue like the Palais de Versailles has no reason not to work on a purely aesthetic level. His work is conceptually doing exactly what he wants it do: reflect certain aspects of the Japanese vibrant culture people do not get enough exposure of in the West. What better way to show the differences and contrast then to put it in an environment like that?

I think that it's interesting to have curators and art collectors push the boundaries of what is acceptable and give art a (potentially) broader audience (I am sure that most people visiting the Palais the Versailles would have never been exposed to Murakami's work).