Takashi Murakami, Doraemon canvas leads Seoul July auction
Published on 08/21/2026 at 15:16 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Takashi Murakami enters the Korean auction spotlight with a major Doraemon canvas. At K Auction's July 22, 2026 sale in Seoul, A Blue Sky! Like We Could Go on Forever! emerged as the auction's top lot, as Maeil Business Newspaper reports on July 23, 2026. Maeil Business Newspaper coverage
Murakami's Doraemon work at K Auction
The canvas A Blue Sky! Like We Could Go on Forever!, painted in 2019, sold for 660,000,000 won at K Auction's headquarters in Seoul's Sinsa district on July 22, 2026, achieving the highest price of the evening. Maeil Business Newspaper coverage
The work was offered with an estimate of 720,000,000 to 1,100,000,000 won, placing the result towards the lower end of the guidance yet firmly in the high six-figure tier. The painting measures 100 by 100 centimeters and is executed in acrylic on canvas, reflecting Murakami's precise Superflat technique.
What the hammer price signals
Against a blue sky, the painting stages Doraemon and his friends flying on bamboo helicopters, set above Murakami's repeated smiling flowers motif along the lower register, a composition the Korean report reads as a bridge between popular culture and contemporary art.
The realized price of 660,000,000 won (roughly mid six-figure dollars depending on the exchange rate on July 22, 2026) confirms sustained demand for Murakami's character-driven Superflat canvases in the Korean market, even when the result slightly trails the upper estimate band.
All news and background on Takashi Murakami
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The Superflat Doraemon universe
The K Auction entry confirms the work's provenance from Galerie Perrotin Tokyo and notes its earlier inclusion in the exhibition Superflat Doraemon, held in Tokyo from November 19, 2019 to January 25, 2020.
In the auction catalogue essay, Murakami's flowers and Doraemon characters are framed as icons of postwar Japanese culture, with flowers signifying enforced optimism and Doraemon embodying kawaii culture and Japan's soft power, set against themes of history, disaster memory and religious imagery.
How the artist works
Murakami is widely associated with the Superflat concept, linking Edo-period ukiyo-e prints, modern manga and anime into a shared flat visual field, and he has systematically explored this in large-scale canvases, sculptures and collaborations with brands such as Louis Vuitton.
Where the artist stands now
Within the current 30-day window since July 22, 2026, A Blue Sky! Like We Could Go on Forever! at K Auction remains one of the most visible recent market signals for Takashi Murakami's Superflat Doraemon works.
Takashi Murakami at a glance
- Artist: Takashi Murakami
- Medium / Genre: Painting and sculpture (Superflat, character-based contemporary art)
- Born: 1962, Tokyo, Japan
- Place(s) of practice: Studio and Kaikai Kiki organization in Tokyo, with international projects in Los Angeles, New York, Paris and Seoul
- Active since: Late 1980s, with wider international recognition after the Superflat exhibition at MOCA Los Angeles in 2001
- Key work groups: Flower paintings, Doraemon canvases, The 500 Arhats, Mr. DOB
- Current/last exhibition: Where Japanese Art Stands Now: Summer 2026, Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo (August 14, 2026 - September 13, 2026)
- Major collections: Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Yokohama Museum of Art; Vancouver Art Gallery
- Awards: Multiple institutional solo exhibitions and commissions; widely recognized through projects such as The 500 Arhats at Mori Art Museum in 2015
- Next date: No specific public exhibition or auction date has been announced within the 30-day window beyond the July 22, 2026 K Auction sale.
Frequently asked questions about Takashi Murakami
What did Takashi Murakami's Doraemon canvas achieve at K Auction in July 2026?
The 2019 canvas A Blue Sky! Like We Could Go on Forever! realized 660,000,000 won at K Auction's July 22, 2026 sale in Seoul, making it the highest priced lot of the auction.
How is Doraemon used in Takashi Murakami's work?
Murakami employs Doraemon as an icon of postwar Japanese culture and kawaii aesthetics, intertwining the character with historical, religious and disaster-related themes, as outlined in K Auction's catalogue essay for the 2019 canvas.
Where can Takashi Murakami's work be seen in Japan in summer 2026?
Murakami's work appears in the group exhibition Where Japanese Art Stands Now: Summer 2026 at Kaikai Kiki Gallery in Tokyo, running from August 14, 2026 to September 13, 2026 according to Kaikai Kiki.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
