Three expositions have now been organized in recent years at the majestic Versailles Palace. In it’s time, it used to host some of the most important people such as Louis XIV “The Sun King” and Marie-Antoinette herself. Now, it hosts some of contemporary art most prolific artist’s, Jeff Koons, Xavier Veilhan and since September 14th, the japanese mogul Takashi Murakami.
For those who don’t know Murakami’s work intimately, you might remember Kanye West’s album cover for Graduation. Or maybe Louis Vuitton’s new design of an eye with three eye-lashes on some of their handbags. Both of those, the college bear, the weird creature and the cartoony eye are both of his making. If I remember well, one of his paintings also appears in one of Jay-Z’s video clips, Blue Magic to be more precise. Overall, Murakami works with manga inspired images and styles in order to create his million-dollar paintings and sculptures. Mr. Murakami was born in Tokyo in 1963 and is now one of the world’s most talked-about contemporary artists.
He is now exposing, or invading as some might argue, the Versailles Palace located 20km south of Paris. He will be presenting 22 works, including seven new sculptures throughout different rooms and the exterior grounds as well. Nevertheless, there is a considerable amount of opposition to this exposition. Clearly it is a controversial show, in aesthetical as much as for it’s political significance. More than 11,000 people have signed petitions claiming the show is degrading and disrespectful. Royalist activists, convinced that it is also illegal, have protested outside the palace gates to oppose Murakami's outlandish – some say pornographic – art introduced in the 17th century surroundings of the Sun King's palace.
Nevertheless, Laurent Le Bon and Emmanuel Perrotin are both convinced that putting some manga-like sculptures makes sense. Laurent Le Bon, curator of the Versailles exhibition, says that “the allegories and other myths of Versailles carry on a dialogue with the dreamlike creatures of Mr. Murakami.” In aesthetical terms and for its imaginary context, I’d say it makes more sense to expose such works than to say that his exhibited works are degrading or even illegal. The works that are already in the palace, were done by such painters, sculptures and gifted craftsmen such as Antoine Coypel to create an imaginary world around this french aristocracy. They sought to create imaginary worlds of great beauty in order to put them in a dream-like reality. That is where manga fits in the sense that is is a product of imagination in order to create a world that permits total freedom where great things can happen and where weird animals like a 20ft toad can exist. It is important to stress that manga appeared in a postwar Japan where they were trying to rebuild it’s political and economic infrastructure. Manga gave them a way out, and produced a spur of creativity among artists.
However, what does Murakami have to say for himself? This: he says seeing the ensemble as a "face-off between the baroque period and postwar Japan". Versailles inspired him, he said, as a symbol of popular strength and cultural renewal. The revolution, in which the people opposed the absolute monarchy, and won, “is something unimaginable in Japanese culture.” He calls it “My Versailles, manga style.” Finally, he gladly added “With my playful smile, I invite you all to the Wonderland of Versailles.” I guess that’s enough a welcoming message to at least see some pictures of his Versailles-remake.
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