Takashi Murakami is best known for his appropriation of the iconography and methodology of manga and anime, including their means of production and distribution; his characters are produced by his studio in industrial quantities with minor variations. This work, which Murakami maintains was intended as an ironic self-portrait, marks one of the earliest appearances of Mr DOB, a slightly unhinged blend of the popular characters Sonic the Hedgehog and Doraemon that has appeared consistently in his work for the past two decades.

The painting also represents a stepping stone in the artist’s transition to commercial production. Wishing to emulate the made-to-order manufacturing techniques of American Minimalism, he outsourced its painting to a signwriter. On finding the finished product ‘too perfect’, Murakami set about hand-sanding the piece – a technique he borrowed from his training in nihonga or Japanese-style painting – making it unique within the artist’s substantial oeuvre. Murakami now regards it as his most representative work.