Chiharu Shiota Presents Her Largest Solo Exhibition in Shanghai

The Long Museum, located on Shanghai’s West Bund, is currently hosting the largest exhibition devoted to the work of Berlin-based artist Chiharu Shiota.

Shiota is best known for her series of powerful and immersive works consisting of red and black threads as well as her “Memory of Skin” exhibition displaying five enormous dresses that are permanently stained in mud while constantly washed by a stream of water in a futile attempt to clean. “Shiota’s inspiration often emerges from a personal experience or emotion which she expands into universal human concerns such as life, death and relationships,” says the gallery bio. “She has redefined the concept of memory and consciousness by collecting ordinary objects such as shoes, keys, beds, chairs and dresses, and engulfing them in immense thread structures” Her works have been presented across the world including the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, Smithsonian Gallery in Washington D.C., and Yorkshire Sculpture Park in the United Kingdom.

Shiota’s latest exhibition is highlighted by a sprawling installation of red threads emerging from steel frame boats. The threads spread upwards and across the surrounding walls to create a crimson canopy. Another highlight includes a room filled with tunnels of black thread which entrap burnt chairs and a charred white grand piano where visitors feel they are wandering into the depths of the Shiota’s mind and emotions. “Through this exhibition epitomizing the ‘presence in absence’ that Shiota has explored throughout her career, visitors will doubtless gain a sense for themselves of the meaning of living and journey of life, and the inner workings of the soul,” reads the gallery description.

The exhibition is now open and will run until March 6. Take a detailed look at the exhibition above.

The Long Museum (West Bund)
3398 Longteng Avenue,
Xuhui District, Shanghai,
China

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