From Working at a Post Office to Becoming One of the Biggest Contemporary Artists
Madsaki was once hanging out with his friends back when he was in New York City.
That’s when they said, “Let’s go drink mad sake”. It rang a bell in the artist, listening to the echo of “mad sake”, and that’s how the name Madsaki was born.
However, before this even happened, the Japanese art mogul practically gave up on his art career. For those who are unfamiliar with him, Madsaki is an Osaka-born artist who is irreversibly affiliated with street art and is peers with artists like Takeshi Murakami. He’s globally known for his smiley-face reminiscent, caricature-esque recreations of milestones in pop culture, and his graffiti-meets-coloring-book style has rewarded him with stardom.
Born in 1974, he moved to the United States at age 6. Madsaki studied at Parsons in New York but was drained after his graduation, and quit the world of art for about half a decade. He states that his life only started around age 40 when his mentor Murakami, the master behind the Postmodern Superflat movement, invited him to join him in a group exhibition. This was a huge contrast for the artist, who still remembers his days as a mailman on a bicycle like it was yesterday.
He-Man, Big Birds from Sesame Street, the Mona Lisa, his wife, Jackie Chan, and the American Gothic are all regular sightings in his paintings: Madsaki is the epitome of a painter, digging out inspiration from his life and surroundings, never pretending to be anyone else but himself. There is a story from which each piece stems, whether it’s how he learned English when he immigrated or a particular movie that left a mark on him.
His irreverent airbrush, spray, and dripping techniques have inspired countless artists and his iconic droopy smiley face has been copied over and over. Ironically, Madsaki claims that his style was born out of his impatience and laziness to perfect little details. Clearly, this is much more of a quality than a flaw, as the art world completely changed after the proper introduction of the genius of Madsaki.
