Interview: Hiroshi Shafer
Hiroshi Shafer was born in Tokyo, Japan. He received a BFA from Tokyo Zoukei Art University in Tokyo in 1997, Japan, After I joined in-depend TV production in Tokyo as director of the documentary program till 2004. I moved to New York in 2004. I live and work in Harlem, NY. He has done solo shows nationally and internationally including Zito Studio, EnlishKills Art Gallery, Hakusen Gallery Tokyo, Parallel Performance Space, and Maishoku Gallery Japan. He also has done group shows at Flux Factory, Fountain Art Fair Miami, Exit Art Gallery NYC, The Other Art Fair Brooklyn, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and more.
There is something simple about subverting the fork or spoon. These are two common objects in the world. Utilitarian and standardized. In keeping within these two templates there is a whole world of possibility in their manipulation. The sculptures are nonfunctional and delicate. There is a twist and pull to them. Outside of their magic, the impulse to touch is great as we are so used to these tactile objects in our daily life. However, the way they are stretched, shaped, or warped hinders my ability to touch them. They stand alone in their hubris. So much so that they carry each other’s weight or are inserted in the tips of their larger form. There is a crudeness about these works even with their polished refinement. There are stories that I want to tell through a fork or spoon.
Read our interview with Hiroshi below!
Installation view of works at Seven House Gallery, Brooklyn, NY, 2023
PP: Walk us through a typical day in your studio or generally through your process to make new work.
HS: I meticulously construct works that resemble mundane useful objects, like spoons and forks, but with twists of humor and whimsy that transform them from practical to sculptural.
Extract It, Wood, concrete, 2024
Big Snot, Resin, concrete, 8 x 2 x 2 inches, 2024
PP: What motivates you to make art?
HS: When it seems possible to elevate an idea that's so silly no one else would think of it into art.
PP: What is your favorite medium and why?
HS: Wood and metal. Both of them has own character on surface so fun to use them :)
Studio view of completed works, WIP, and supplies
PP: Do you ever work collaboratively and how so? Why or why not?
HS: Making video work with actors and animals but I don’t like to collaborate with another artist because they are selfish and I’m too.
PP: Favorite hobby outside of art?
HS: Growing plants and being barked at by a dog.
To learn more about Hiroshi’s work, see his Instagram and Website