bio
Maira Shimada is a Frankfurt-born Japanese-Australian artist based in Eora/Sydney on unceded Gadigal land. Raised amongst classical-contemporary musicians and dancers, her artistic intent is rooted in a restless magnetism for music, theatre and performance. Everything is an experiment. Maira holds up mirrors and bounces light at odd angles. Simultaneously fascinated by and rejective of technological advancement, she has either utilised or abandoned technology to access other worlds and orient herself within nature.
Personal memory loiters in flux with contemporary existence. Translating between languages and mediums, she is interested in what's hidden, what's retained, and what's butchered into new poetic direction. Her chosen materials of textile, ink, sound, video, installation, and various untraditional materials teeter around fragility, degradation, and becoming unrecognisable.
Maira graduated with a Bachelor of Natural History Illustration and Faculty Medal Award from the University of Newcastle in 2020.
I acknowledge the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the lands on which I live and work, the Darug, Gundungurra and Eora Nations. I extend my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their continuing connections to the land, waters, and cultures. Sovereignty was never ceded. This was and always will be Aboriginal land.