Japanese pop artist Takashi Murakami danced down Broadway yesterday in a furry flower costume atop a small float decorated with jellyfish eyes and skulls as his signature anime characters, Kaikai and Kiki, hovered overhead in the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Earlier this week, the artist told the New York Times the characters “represent the aesthetic philosophy behind my work. They are cute yet fearsome modern and yet connected to the past. They embody eccentric beauty.”
Only the fourth artist to grace the celebrated event—following Tom Otterness, Jeff Koons, and Keith Haring—Macy’s inflated giant balloons of Murakami’s cute rabbit, Kaikai, and mischievous looking three-eyed, fang-toothed creature, Kiki. Our friends at Arrested Motion had a camera crew on site to capture the crazy characters making their way through the heart of Manhattan and into the hearts of the viewers around the world.
Takaski Murakami, Kaikai Kiki balloons on Broadway, Courtesy Arrested Motion
Click through below for a gallery of Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade art balloon images.
Takaski Murakami, Kaikai balloon on Broadway, Courtesy Arrested Motion
Takaski Murakami, Kiki balloon on Broadway, Courtesy Arrested Motion
Takaski Murakami in flower outfit on float moving down Broadway, Courtesy Arrested Motion
Jeff Koons’ Rabbit balloon, 2007. Courtesy Life.com
Keith Haring’s Figure With Heart balloon, 2008. Courtesy NY Daily News
Tom Otterness’ Humpty Dumpty balloon, 2005. Courtesy Life.com