1 / Converging Cultures

• • Traveling CofferOu family of Wenzhou, Zhehian Province, China	The Sultan Mehmet IIAttr. to Gentile Bellini (Italian, ca. 1429–1507)	Saltcellar with Portuguese FiguresEdo artist, Court of Benin, Nigeria	Namban (“Southern Barbarians” in Japan)Kano School, Japan	Dish with Grape DesignUnknown artist, Iznik, Turkey	The FittingMary Cassatt (American, 1844–1926)
    Human Races (Las Castas)Unknown artist, Mexico	Pelea de Gallos (Fight of the Roosters)Miguel Luciano (Puerto Rican, b. 1972)	Chi Kan Jo (Wisdom, Impression, Sentiment)Kuroda Seiki (Japanese, 1866–1924)	Miss ko2 (Project ko2)Takashi Murakami (Japanese, b. 1962)	Pilgrim FlaskUnknown artist, Venice, Italy	Porcelain PlateUnknown artist, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, China
    Portrait of East India Company Official (probably William Fullerton)Dip Chand (Indian, active 18th c.)	Double-Sided DiptychGondar Workshops, Ethiopia	Our Lady of Cocharcas Under the BaldachinUnknown artist, Peru	Chûbon no zu (Picture of the Middle Class)Kitagawa Utamaro (Japanese, 1753–1806)

expert perspective

Melissa Chiu Museum Director and Vice President for Global Art Programs, Asia Society

“

There is an element in Takashi Murakami’s work that is about this idea of appropriation. I think on the one hand he appropriates ideas from Japanese popular culture, but also it is grounded in Andy Warhol’s practice of marrying art and consumer culture.

Miss ko2 is a life-size sculpture of a curvaceous blonde woman. This kind of sexualized female character is one that we see often in anime, manga, and Otaku culture. He’s creating Japanese-derived icons to export to the world, rather than bringing in Western style icons and adapting them for Japanese society. So there’s a very nice reverse effect that’s happening with Murakami’s work.”