Chiharu Shiota: The Key in the Hand (Esposizione Internazionale D'arte)

Black and red woolen yarns are the trademark staple in the art of Chiharu
Shiota (b. Osaka, 1972; lives and works in Berlin). She arranges one or several
objects—beds, garments, shoes, scissors—in a room and then envelops
them in an expansive web of strings. With her installations, the artist, who
studied with Marina Abramovic and Rebecca Horn, explores the great themes
of human life: belonging, fear, birth and death. For 2015, she was selected
to design the Japanese pavilion at the 56th Venice Biennale. The artist will
realize a new installation titled The Key in the Hand made of two boats, red
strings, and countless used keys she solicited from her viewers in a worldwide
open call. The project is designed to intertwine her own memories with the
recollections of the keys’ former owners to reflect on the meaning of life. This
book presents the Biennale piece as well as selected works Chiharu Shiota
created from 1998 up to now. With an essay by Hitoshi Nakano.