Sebastian Masuda Brings a 9-Foot Hello Kitty to New York

Picture a room filled with all your earliest memories. This is the image that Sebastian Masuda, the ambassador of Kawaii (cute), brought to the streets of Manhattan with a nine-foot Hello Kitty sculpture.

For Masuda—who also runs a cult shop called 6%DOKIDOKI in the youth-centric Harajuku district in Tokyo—a shared future is the most important aspect of his work, “Time After Time.” For this ongoing project, the artist installed a giant clear Hello Kitty doll that will soon fill up with notes and objects from participating individuals.

By creating workshops with local schools, universities, and community centers, Masuda hopes to engage the next generation of children to “shape a better future for themselves.” For him, the physical form of each “time capsule” is secondary to the primary purpose of the project—to deliver happy messages. The project will take place in over 10 cities around the world; in 2020, the year Tokyo is slated to host the Olympics, all 10 “time capsules” will be constructed into a tower.

Masuda’s sculpture, which is on view until September 13, coincides with Japan Society’s exhibition,”Life of Cats,” a show that displays a selection of Hiraki Ukiyo-e Foundation’s woodblock prints featuring felines.

Photo: artnet News.

Photo: artnet News.

Photo: artnet News.