Murakami’s portrait of Godzilla wreathed in flames
© Takashi Murakami
The post-nuclear lizard monster Godzilla—who’s impervious to tanks but susceptible to the cunnings of Matthew Broderick—is celebrating his 65th anniversary of terrorising Tokyo. And while he has received many honours in his life, from receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to being the subject of everyone’s second-favorite Blue Oyster Cult song, a new laurel has been bestowed upon the King of Monsters in recognition of the milestone: Godzilla has been immortalised in a portrait by the Japanese superstar artist Takashi Murakami.
The painting will be unveiled this weekend at the Long Beach, California music and arts festival ComplexCon, along with a suite of Godzilla merchandise that includes clothing, pins, bags, and prints all designed by Murakami. In a video posted to Instagram last week, the artist gave a sneak peak of the work of art to his 1.5 million followers. “Hi, this is my new piece, Godzilla,” Murakami says as he gestures to the massive painting before walking the camera closer to the work and showing off what he describes as his “very new style”. The massive, custom-shaped canvas depicts the awesome monster speckled in flames and rendered in Murakami’s flattened, post-Pop style. We’re sure Mothra is flapping with jealousy.
