Panda ish "Kawaii"

I would be severely hard-pressed to find any sort of practical use for "Panda" by Takashi Murakami - at almost seven feet tall, five feet wide and freakishly adorable in all it's fiberglassical glory, it hardly serves any sort of function, other than perhaps a very oddly-shaped, nightmare-inducing coatrack. Luckily, my job isn't to find a practical use for it, so it's all good. On to the assignment.

Oddly enough, Murakami's "Panda" does stand to represent as many as three different cultures - Japanese, North American, and, of course, Artistic.

First and foremost, "Panda" serves as a great cultural icon for Japanese art culture and cartoon/fashion style - not only because it was created by a Japanese artist, but because it also embodies an increasingly popular artistic style favored by Japanese teenagers (commonly referred to as 'Harajuku' in the fashion world) with it's lively colors, warped patterns, creepy smile, and face that's positively kawaii, give or take the enormously face-eating tongue. No, really, stare at it long enough and I swear it moves.

"Panda" also works as a cultural icon for North American style. Ever increasing numbers of 'wapanese' teens prove that Japanese art styles are becoming increasingly popular in Western countries, sometimes creating odd mixes and clashes with our own cultural icons, which up until recently tended to be more stiff, reserved and 'classy'. In this case, the giant fiberglass "Panda" is shown standing on an antique Louis Vitton trunk, which is most definitely not a Japanese brand. Putting the two together is like fitting two puzzle pieces together to create one unique work of art.

All in all, and given the points I've already stated, I think I can safely say "Panda" serves as an artisitic form of entertainment for both Japanese and Western cultures - an enormous, loveable piece of art that combines the changing styles of two entirely different cultures, from opposite sides of the planet, into a single product that serves to seamlessly unite both cultures involved.

Now... bow to the cuteness before it licks you to death with that gigantic tongue of his... hers... whatever. And try not to stare. It's slightly weight-concious.