Hello Kitty Con was what Super Happy Fun Stuff is made of!

There are no words to describe the sheer joy and fervor that was pulsating through the MOCA exhibit during the very first

Hello Kitty Con.

40 years of cuteness was celebrated in full form at this sold-out four day event.

Despite the arduous lines to see the displays or the wall to wall people you had to endure in the shopping area,

you’ve still never seen 7000 happier people in one space.

There was a delight to behold around every corner.

 

Whether it was peaking into the HK dream house, listening to

the DJane spinning Super Happy Fun music on the front porch,

or walking into the over sized replica of the first coin purse that launched this unending craze

people of all ages were serious about getting silly.

Some learned how to draw the little cat, that is reportedly really a human girl,

and others got nostalgic gazing at vintage artifacts.

Those lucky enough to get on the list got free Hello Kitty tattoos by the city’s most celebrated artists,

and most dressed in their Hello Kitty cutest!

   

No stone was left unturned. The bathrooms and ATM machines were adorned with the Japanese cuteness,

and exclusive treats were available at gourmet chocolatier prices for the discerning palate.

But nothing, for me, compared to the couture fashion that Hello Kitty inspired.

Designs fit for royalty expressed humor, wit and allure while at times being

down right sexy.

    

From fembot to latex, no character better lends itself to a bit of kink like the

40 year old puss.

Its no wonder why the brand has kept the adults intrigued all these years.

    

Oh, if only we lived in a land where we got to dress like this all the time

the world we be a much more interesting place!

  

But alas, most of us will just continue to buy the functional art

in attempt to brighten up the hum drum world every now and again.

Those who don’t understand may ask what the fascination is with all these simply drawn characters.

I say the writing is on the wall.

       

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More Hello Kitty FUN

I was lucky enough to be in Los Angeles when Hello Kitty celebrated her 35th.

I knew I had to get there a little early to make sure I got the special goodie bag they were giving away to the first 100 people.  I imagined I would have had to stand in line with a bunch of kids and may have felt a little guilty taking those treats from them. Maybe I would share some of the stuff in the bag with a saddened kid behind me who got there too late. If there were some things in there I could bare to part with.  Well, to my surprise I wasn’t the only crazed adult fan.  Not only did I come too late to get the gift bag but I couldn’t get in at all. I was the sadden kid that day that had to leave empty handed.  

Thankfully I gave myself an artists date and was able to go to the gallery on my own another time though. This time there was more room to take my time and explore.  My jaw dropped when I walked in.  As I walked past the mock rooms of epic hello kitty proportions, daydreaming about what it would be like to actually decorate my place like this, I passed

through the cafe that was serving high

tea with hello kitty tea cakes and chocolates. I  was charmed by the two ladies who were having a very adult looking conversation while they nibbled on a kitty ear.

I finally made it to the gallery in the back half of the building.

It was an exhibition of her history through the years and an artistic homage from over a hundred artist painting and sculpting their own version of her.

These are some of my favorite….

She lit up in all different colors

By Plasticgod

Ahh bliss

When I found out that they were selling limited addition prints on canvas of some of the work I had to run out and get some.  I am happy to say I am the proud owner of three of the Plastic God pieces that weren’t featured at the gallery show.  With so many to choose from it took me awhile to boil down which ones to get.  Should I get Hello Kitty as Kraftwerk? Or James Bond? The Pee Wee Herman one was so super cute.  All of those reminded me of people I loved but I wanted something personal to me.

I figured I would pick timeless  icons through the ages.  Ones that spoke to the masses about alternative ways of life.  Ones that represented a unique point of view. All subtle and almost lifelike.  Ones that at first glance you couldn’t tell who it was except for that unmistakable little bow. I chose…

Hello Kitty as Ganesh

Hello Kitty as Salvidor Dali

and how could I not include Hello Kitty as Walter in The Big Lebowski?

Even the title of the film has ‘bow’ in it…

They make me giggle a little everyday.

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SUPER HAPPY FUN pop art by Dave Brockett

Is it so wrong that one of my favorite artists is my very own brother?

Call it nepotism or just good taste, Dave Brockett is the next Takashi Murakami if you ask me. Like most superflat artists Dave Brockett is influenced by the commercial world around him and has worked as a graphic artist for many years.

Superflat exhibit curated by Takashi Murakami

This adds a certain panache to his masterful fine-art paintings. You don’t have to strain to see the similarities.

Both have a whimsy and hilarity to their work.

Commercial spots by: Dave Brockett

Artwork: Takashi Murakami

Both comment on  sex

Strip Tease by: Dave Brockett

Strip Tease by: Dave Brockett

Art work: Takashi Murakami

Art work: Takashi Murakami

…and politics.

RockemSockem USA by: Dave Brockett

Art work: Takashi Murakami

One might show a pastel world gone mad while another invites you into a technicolor dream scape of a 60’s cartoon…

Laughs2 by: Dave Brockett

but no matter what the method one thing is for sure, both ask the viewer nottake life so seriously an always remember to ‘Grin Smile, Giggle and Laugh’.

Love by: Dave Brockett

With his playful graphic surrealism and abstractions of pop culture and iconic images he asks the viewer to play along with him in a fun guessing game.  Like with this little character that mouths all kinds of words but , like the man that painted him, he is most famous for  ‘Love’.

To see more of his work and buy originals and prints go to:

http://davebrockett.com/

SUPERior Art

I wish I had enough wall space to hang all the art I want to buy. That is one reason I am starting this blog. It gives me a new wall to hang and discuss art that I appreciate and admire. Some of it will even be for sale at my  store on Etsy.

This first piece is from a very exciting artist named JC Brown.  He was not only our production designer for MU – the visually stunning film of my husbands’ that I produced but he has also worked on many of Hollywood’s big blockbusters such as Memoirs of a Geisha, The Last Samurai, and Pirates of the Caribbean.

He was born in Texas and grew up in Indiana but he spent over 20 years in Japan where most of    his influence comes from. The painting is on canvas  with calligrapher’s ink a ink, and  patinated gold & copper leaf background done over a red background.  It depicts a broken bamboo stalk with new growth beginning from the top. ~He calls it ‘Rejuvenation.

It is hard to capture it’s true essence in pictures.  The bright Chinese red is subdued        until the light hits it.  And the shimmer of gold and copper leaf just sparkles.  I am        honored to have two JC Brown originals hanging in my home.  One he gave us for    our wedding that signifies a long life together and the other is of a perfect lotus               rising above  the muck and muddy waters. A great reminder for me to rise above the daily minutia and     continue to bloom like a flower.

For more information about this beautiful piece of work or if you would like to purchase it, visit…

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SuperHappyFunStuff