In conjunction with the Seattle Art Fair, Pivot Art + Culture is hosting a pop-up exhibition, Juxtapoz x Superflat, co-curated by art superstar and “Warhol of Japan,” Takashi Murakami and Jutxapoz magazine editor Evan Pricco. The exhibition is a sequel of sorts to Murakami’s original and highly influential Superflat exhibition that premiered in 2000 and traveled to various arts institutions, including the Henry Art Gallery. With a diverse roster of over twenty-five artists working in a wide range of disciplines, the exhibition promises a mashup of contemporary global trends in visual culture that cross and collapse the boundaries between high and low art.
Juxtapoz x Superflat is one of the largest of the many satellite exhibitions taking place during the Seattle Art Fair. The partnership between Murakami and Pricco is apt, given their shared dedication to championing artists that draw from the underground rather than the mainstream. In addition, the inclusion of Juxtapoz’s own roster of artists positions the exhibition to widen the scope of Murakami’s original Superflat theory, which focused primarily on postwar Japanese cultural and consumer aesthetics as well as Japanese art history.
From Juxtapoz: “Artists selected to appear in the show by Murakami include: Chiho Aoshima, Urs Fischer, Kim Jung Gi, Kazunori Hamana, James Jean, JH Kagaku, Friedrich Kunath, Takashi Murakami, Kazumi Nakamura, Otani Workshop, Mark Ryden, David Shrigley, Katsuya Terada, a selection from Toilet Paper Magazine, Yuji Ueda, Yuji Ueno, He Xiang Yu, and Zoer & Velvet. Artists selected by Pricco include Trenton Doyle Hancock, Todd James, Austin Lee, Rebecca Morgan, Elisabeth Higgins O’Connor, Paco Pomet, Parra, Christian Rex van Minnen, Erin M. Riley, Devin Troy Strother, Sage Vaughn, and Ben Venom.”
The exhibition will also include a number of events, including live drawing in the gallery by Terada Katsyua and Kim Jung Gi starting on Thursday, August 4 when the exhibition opens to the public. An artist talk will take place on Friday, August 5 featuring Takashi Murakami, Evan Pricco and many of the participating artists. The opening celebration will take place on Friday, August 5 at 7pm and will include a playlist curated by Portland hip-hop artist, Aesop Rock.
Make sure to also check out Pricco’s interview with Murakami on the themes and ideas behind the exhibition and collaboration in Jutxapoz’s current issue in their Beyond the Cover feature. Additional content on the participating artists can be found on the Juxtapoz website.
Juxtapoz x Superflat
When: August 4-7, 9am-9pm
Where: Pivot Art + Culture (609 Westlake Ave N)
