Will Geisai Miami bite the dust? Your guess is as good as mine.

Maria Adelaida Lopez’s doll house covered with vacuum cleaner dust. Photo from: Critical Miami

I was really excited when I found out that the popular, bi-annual, Japanese art show, Geisai, was coming to the States. The talented Takashi Murakami has been on the grind the last few months. Geisai Miami, the first edition of the Geisai art festivals in the country, appears to have been a dollar store of unknown art. But alas, nothing is as good as the original. There was more reporting done a few months ago about the artists being selected than reviews of the event itself. My advice to Takashi: Keep Geisai in Japan.

Kanye Mixtape and Happy Birthday to Me!!!

Kanye’s mixtape cover, photo from HipHopDX; Me and 9th Wonder at his album release show

Twenty-one years ago a beautiful little girl came into this world – it was moi! Your girl is finally legal. I had an awesome b’day party last night to celebrate turning the big 21. Of course I had to have karaoke, another great Japanese invention. For my b’day I will give yall a present. I got my hands on Kanye West’s mixtape a while ago, but I didn’t get a chance to post it. I hope Kanye is doing okay right now. His mother’s unexpected passing must be killing him; he hasn’t updated his blog in a while. Rest in peace Dr. Donda West.
The mixtape entitled The Graduate is WAY better (and longer) than the official Graduation CD. It’s all due to the mixing geniuses of Ohio-born Mick Boogie and Terry Urban not to mention my man, Carolina’s finest, 9th Wonder. This mixtape is SO DOPE. There’s some Nas, Mos Def, Jay-Z, Weezy, Biggie, Busta Rhymes, Lupe, Dr. Dre, Common, Talib Kweli, Ludacris, and Little Brother. Damn, even Patti Labelle? Talkin about pulling out all the stops, Takashi did some new cover art. Here’s a selection of some of my favorite songs. You really are suppose to listen to the tracks back to back. If you want to listen to the whole thing go here. Before you guys pounce on me about illegally downloading and sharing songs I will have you know that Kanye released this mixtape for free and wants people to download it. Make sure you go buy 9th Wonder’s new album and Little Brother’s new album. I’m going to see LB perform on Friday. For my b’day, can y’all get me a Takashi skateboard?

New posters and more than 2,000 page views!

Hey, everyone! This is a busy few weeks for me because of finals. I just wanted to thank you again for your continued support. Black Otaku has more than 2,000 page views! To show my appreciation I want to share with you some recent additions to my cinder-box apartment I call a dorm.

I don’t normally buy things online, but I decided to give it the old college try when I discovered that Giant Robot has a pretty rad online store. I suggest you go take a look at what they are selling. There were a lot of products to pick from. I’ve kinda gotten into this art phase where I am really interested in prints and posters by emerging artists. Looky what I got!

Takashi Murakami art exhibition and gala in L.A. (Kanye performs!)

Photo by Eric Nakamura, Giant Robot publisher and editor

I think I would have even endured the L.A. smog just to get a glance at Takashi Murakami’s show opening and gala at The Geffen Contemporary at The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) this past weekend. Saturday the exhibition opened for members only, and Sunday there was a gala for invited guests. Celebrities such as Owen Wilson, Toby McGuire, Cindy Crawford, Serena Willliams and Christina Ricci came out for a glitzy, artsy, sort-of-perverted weekend of fun. On Sunday, Harajuku girls led the way, and Kanye West brought the house down with several musical numbers. It seems like everyone was also stealing each other’s Takashi-inspired placemats.

Takashi is the Japanese artist best known for his colorful “superflat” style. He is the guy behind those limited edition Louis Vuitton bags and Kanye West’s new album cover. MOCA is featuring more than 90 of Takashi’s works (paintings, sculptures, installations and films) both old and new. Included in the exhibition will be a fully operational Louis Vuitton boutique showcasing Takashi’s designs and a huge, metallic, self-portrait sculpture in the form of a Buddha that stands 5,680 mm high. The exhibition will be open to the public from Oct. 29, to Feb. 11. Check out Eric’s blog for a slide show of photos from the exhibit.

Kanye West album debuting tomorrow with Takashi Murakami cover!!!

 

CD cover

Kanye West played hentai (anime porn) on stage during his Graduation listening party at the New World Stages. Is there anything he won’t do? I know I shouldn’t support anybody that uses the devastation of a national tragedy to stage a CD promotion war with a rival MC, but I can’t help it. I’m a sucka for good marketing. I’m also a sucka for good art. Keeping with his Japanese theme, Kanye partnered with legendary Japanese artist Takashi Murakami to create his album cover. This guy is serious business. He is the man behind the Superflat movement, which helped get many Westerners exposed to “Japanese-ness.” His work has been displayed in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin in Paris, and a bunch of other galleries throughout Japan and the world. Many people probably know him for his work for Louis Vuitton. I want to go to the GEISAI festival he throws in Japan.