Chiharu Shiota - The Key in the Hand

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.