In celebration of its tenth anniversary, Kunsthalle Lissabon in Portugal has invited four arts organizations to take over its exhibition space and digital platforms to examine how geographical and organizational differences challenge notions of institutional identity. This November, ICA will inhabit and transform the Lisbon venue  —  from production methods to infrastructure  —  into an extension of its Philadelphia building to present an exhibition of the video work of artist Trevor Shimizu. Primarily recognized for his paintings and drawings, Shimizu will create an in-depth installation of his videos, video paintings, and online interventions, offering a prescient and poignant commentary on affect and identity in our socially mediated moment.

Trevor Shimizu: Performance Artist is part of the ICA initiative I is for Institute, which examines the perceptions and parameters of contemporary arts institutions as a way to create a space for dialogue about how we might re-imagine them. The project unfolds through a series of exhibition collaborations and conversations with curators and directors reflecting on their work and its institutional and local contexts. The conversations are archived online at iisforinstitute.icaphila.org

— Alex Klein, Dorothy and Stephen R. Weber (CHE’60 ) Curator

Trevor Shimizu (b. 1978; lives Long Island City, NY) has had solo shows at the Rowhouse Project, Baltimore; and Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen. His work has been exhibited at Electronic Arts Intermix; the White Columns Annual; the Whitney Biennial; the Queens Museum of Art, New York; and the High Museum of Art, Atlanta.

Support

Kunsthalle Lissabon is supported by República Portuguesa, Direção-Geral das Artes, FfAI, and Coleção Maria e Armando Cabral.

Trevor Shimizu: Performance Artist is an extension of I is for Institute, a landmark international initiative researched and developed with support from The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.