Drawing Inspiration: Murakami

Artist Micah Lidberg interprets five titles by Haruki Murakami to kick off NOWNESS’s latest design competition marking the highly anticipated English-language release of the Japanese author’s new novel 1Q84. In collaboration with Random House Inc., NOWNESS invites you to submit an original artwork inspired by any of the writer’s best-selling novels or short stories—the full list can be seen here—to win exclusive Murakami editions or a commission for NOWNESS. “His imagery is incredibly detailed and beautiful, and wonderfully odd sometimes,” says Lidberg of the evocative titles, such as Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World and A Wild Sheep Chase, that he listened to while he worked. “You get the feeling Murakami is a person who has quietly observed the world and its ways for quite some time.” Six winners will be announced on October 25, each awarded with a first-edition copy of 1Q84 signed by the author, as well as a complete archive of his previous works. Reflecting our ongoing commitment to discovering new creative talent, one student entrant will also be rewarded with a paid commission for NOWNESS and have their work published on the site. To be considered for this students must write "student submission" in the description box (university enrollment will be verified by NOWNESS). Designs can be of any two-dimensional medium including illustration, photography and digital art. The competition is open for submissions for two weeks until October 11, followed by a one-week voting period. To enter, use the form below to upload your work, including the title of the work that inspired it in the description, and share your submission via email, Facebook and Twitter to encourage voting. All submissions can be viewed here.

To read the competition’s full terms and conditions, including details of eligibility for the student prize, click here.

1Q84 is published by Alfred A. Knopf in the US and Harvill Secker in the UK, imprints of the Random House Group.