The Economist "Infantile Capitalism"

At the centre of Takashi Murakami's new exhibition is a shop. Even Andy Warhol never went that far

AMONG the many rooms that make up this grand retrospective of the work of Takashi Murakami, Japan's best-known contemporary artist, one is especially provocative. It is not the gallery with the wide-eyed cartoon-like figures in bizarrely erotic poses. Nor is it the atrium, with its towering sculpture of a colourfully grotesque, pointy-headed alien, surrounded by adorable marshmallow-like sentries. The biggest buzz is about the space right in the centre of the Brooklyn Museum's 18,500 square-foot (1,700 square-metre) show: a fully operational Louis Vuitton shop, where visitors can buy their very own luxury handbag covered in Mr Murakami's playful designs for upwards of $650.

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A thought provoking article and worth to read. Basically Murakami thrives on this but yet making strong statements against the pop culture of Japan especially anime aspect since he felt it gutted the very soul of Japan. His most salient point is lament that Japan have lost its masculinity and it is manifested so strongly in the pop culture notably anime/manga output.