BLACKPINK collaborates with Takashi Murakami to bring together K-pop music and contemporary art

BLACKPINK is launching a special collaboration capsule collection this weekend, much to their fans’ delight. YG Entertainment confirmed on December 6 that the four members have planned to renew their exclusive contracts. Shortly after, the next day, YG PLus announced the launch of a capsule collection that is set to feature an amazing collaboration between BLACKPINK and Takashi Murakami on a limited-edition collection. This launches worldwide on Friday, December 8, exclusively on NTWRK.

The famed graphic designer has created anew character named Pandakashi, inspired by the music style of BLACKPINK. Pandakashi is a character specially created for this collaboration. The character embodies using art and music to bring people together.

This is notably a19-piece collection, which is priced from $15-$300. Weekend activations will take place on December 9 and 10 at Alchemist Miami for Art Basel weekend, and the NTWRK Los Angeles store.

Contradicting the ‘common perception of the color pink’

BLACKPINK is afour-member South Korean girl band composed of Jennie Kim, Lisa, Kim Jisoo andRoseanne Park. The band was formed by YG Entertainment under the prominent K-pop trainee system in South Korea.

When the band debuted, YG Entertainment revealed why it was named BLACKPINK. "The meaning of BLACKPINK aims to contradict the common perception of the color pink," it said in a statement at the time. "Pink is commonly used to portray prettiness, but BLACKPINK actually means to say that 'Pretty isn't everything.' It also symbolizes that they are a team that encompasses not only beauty but also great talent."

‘This is what we have come to call art’

Murakami is known for his paintings, sculptures, and films made by mutating characters of his own creation. His work is an embodiment of an intersection of pop culture, history, and fine art.

Murakami has been inventing characters since the early 1990s. These characters popularly combine various aspects of famous cartoons from Japan, Europe, and the United States.

Here’s what Murakami once said about art: “We want to see the newest things. That is because we want to see the future, even if only momentarily. It is the moment in which, even if we don’t completely understand what we have glimpsed, we are nonetheless touched by it. This is what we have come to call art.”

The website of Gagosian, which is a global network of art galleries specializing in modern and contemporary art, says of Murakami, “Not only does Murakami merge different time periods, styles, and subject matter in his work, but his approach to art crosses the boundaries between gallery, studio, art fair, and media as well. Along with creating paintings and sculptures, he has hosted art fairs for emerging artists, curated exhibitions, and made films featuring his many characters and motifs. Combining fantasy, science, and history, he shows that none of these categories can be considered in isolation.”