The second exhibition shown in the Project Room of the new gallery space of Wilkinson Gallery, will be Shimabuku’s Fish & Chips.
The piece, previously shown at Tate Liverpool for the Biennial in 2006 and at the DAAD Galerie in Berlin, has been filmed under water: every now and then a fish, swimming in the deep blue sea, seems to be surprised by a potato, which Shimabuku has slipped into the water in front of him. The British national dish has been turned into a humorous “rebus”. But this apparently absurd encounter ultimately encourages the scrutiny of the mundane elements of daily life.
In most of his works, Shimabuku explores the role of communication, memory and myth in the construction of both animal and human consciousness. He likes to engage the public directly by creating interactive situations.
Born 1969 in Kobe, the Japanese artist has lived and worked in Berlin since 2004. Recent shows include:
2007: Shimabuku’s Fish & Chips, DAAD Galerie Berlin, 2006: ANSTOSS BERLIN, Haus am Waldsee, Berlin, Germany (cat.), Berlin-Tokyo Tokyo-Berlin, Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany (cat.), International 06, Liverpool Biennial, Liverpool, UK (cat.)