From May 6 to September 3, 2023, Museion presents the largest exhibition by Shimabuku (*1969, Kobe, Japan) in Europe to date and his first solo exhibition in an Italian museum.
Shimabuku's interdisciplinary art offers a subtle, curious and humorous approach to the world. His works are created in personal moments of wonder or amazement, beginning with an idea, a longed-for encounter, a poem. Through interaction with the environment, in which the artist expresses his innermost thoughts, these intimate moments become accessible, becoming public statements as photographic, filmic and sculptural reflections in the exhibition space. In this way, Shimabuku succeeds in discovering relationships between animals, landscapes, history, ideas and people, similarities and reflections in a fluid transition.
The exhibition is entitled "Shimabuku. Me, We", which is directly inspired by a quote from the world-famous boxer Muhammad Ali, which some consider to be the shortest poem in the world, and which can be seen as a basic definition of what is called a relationship: Me, We, I, We.
On the two top floors of Museion, a wide range of work from the early 1990s to the present day is on display, including works made especially for the current exhibition. On the third floor, a retrospective "flow of episodes" takes place without any linear time division, while on the fourth floor there is a thematic connection between older and more recent works. The interweaving of different categories is important here: objects, animals, fruit, history and international geographies. Shimabuku's aesthetic blurs categorical boundaries and creates the effect that outlines become sharper, as if they are being scrutinized. In Shimabuku's work there is no contrast between inside and outside, instead he focuses on the interaction of the different areas.
Shimabuku at Museion (Photo: Luca Guadagnini)
A highlight of the exhibition is the large sculptural installation Me, We (2023), produced in collaboration with the Fondazione Antonio Dalle Nogare in Bolzano and the former Montecatini company (formerly Solland Silicon) in Merano. It consists of building materials from the Mauracherhof and the former Montecatini and Solland Silicion factories. In this installation, the artist brings together the buildings - one is currently being demolished and the other is being completely renovated - and their different cultural backgrounds. The Mauracherhof was built in 1278, while the former Montecatini factory dates from the period of Italianization in the 1920s. In Me, We (2023), the artist interweaves the fundamentally different histories into a work of art with a future and creates a new shared context of meaning.
The artist has designed an edition exclusively for the exhibition, a collaboration with Mutina, the well-known company specializing in high-quality designer ceramics. The edition is part of the 'Mutina for Art' program, founded to support artists. The exhibition is also a direct result of Mutina's This is Not a Prize award, given to Shimabuku in 2019 for his unparalleled artistic expression and multi-layered and all-encompassing imagination. Since then, Mutina has been closely associated with Museion and has been the main sponsor of Shimabuku's exhibition.
May 6 to September 3, 2023
