Artist: Takashi Murakami
Title: 727 FATMAN LITTLE BOY
Year: 2024
Edition: 100
Size: image 670 x 1000 / sheet 770 x 1100 mm
Medium: Silkscreen
This print is packed in the original packaging. This is hand signed by Takashi Murakami.
Note: This will be shipped from Japan so the buyer is responsible for all import fees and taxes in their respective country.
If you have any questions or queries about this piece of art or would like to see more pictures, please feel free to email us at info@takaoka-art.com
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“727 FATMAN LITTLE BOY” by Takashi Murakami: A Significant Addition to the National Museum of Art, Osaka
Takashi Murakami’s 727 FATMAN LITTLE BOY (2017), part of his renowned 727 series, was officially added to the collection of the National Museum of Art, Osaka, in Nakanoshima in 2023. This acquisition marks a historic moment for the museum, as it is the first Murakami work to become part of its permanent collection—a milestone of considerable significance for the Japanese art scene.
The work was initially unveiled at the “Collection 1 80/90/00/10” exhibition, showcasing its bold and provocative themes. The background features the words FAT MAN and LITTLE BOY, referencing the atomic bombs dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima during World War II. By incorporating these historical symbols, the piece delves into the intricate and often fraught relationship between Japan and America.
Adding to its intensity is the phrase SHOVE IT ALL IN, rendered in a striking graphic design by artist MADSAKI. This layered and provocative messaging underscores the complexities and contradictions present in post-war Japanese identity and its cultural exchanges with the West.
About the 727 Series
The 727 series is a hallmark of Murakami’s oeuvre, blending his iconic character DOB-kun with stylistic elements of the Heian period’s Shigisan Engi-e, a celebrated picture scroll. These works reinterpret medieval Japanese artistic traditions while engaging with the structures and techniques of Western art.
The series takes its name from a billboard advertising 727 Cosmetics, visible along the Tokaido Shinkansen tracks. While the number originally references the company founder’s birthday, Murakami’s inspiration also draws from an erroneous connection to the Boeing 727 passenger plane. The first work in the 727 series was created in 1996 and now resides in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Through 727 FATMAN LITTLE BOY, Murakami not only revisits this influential series but also provides a deeply reflective commentary on Japan’s historical and cultural dynamics.
