About

Shino Yanai is a practice-led doctoral researcher and interdisciplinary artist who has created performance-based works. Her research investigates how noise and improvisation in art can release unconscious trauma, focusing on the historical context of Japanese imperialism. She was born in Japan, and she changed her nationality from Korean to Japanese at the age of twenty, prompting her to question the construction of identity and perceived notions of nationhood. Her work seeks to reanimate the past through memories, bringing the viewers into a new relationship with historical events. Prior to her journey into contemporary art, she received classical piano training.

Awards and Grants

2023 Malcolm Hughes Research Bursary and the Jean Spencer Memorial Bursary: Slade School of Fine Art, UCL
2022 Grant from the Nomura Foundation: Doctoral Research in Slade School of Fine Art, UCL
2022 Malcolm Hughes Research Bursary and the Jean Spencer Memorial Bursary: Slade School of Fine Art, UCL
2021 Ogasawara Toshiaki Memorial Foundation: Exhibition and performance ‘Well Temperament’ as part of the project ‘Praying for Tokyo’ in Tokyo Biennale. 2020/2021
2020 Malcolm Hughes Research Bursary and the Jean Spencer Memorial Bursary: Slade School of Fine Art, UCL
2019 Grant from the Nomura Foundation: Doctoral Research in Slade School of Fine Art, UCL
2017–18 Fellowship of Overseas Study Programme for Upcoming Artists, Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunka-cho), Government of Japan
2016 Grant from the Nomura Foundation: Walter Benjamin Portbou Project
2014–15 Fellowship of Grant for Young Artists from the POLA Art Foundation (hosted by Tomoko Yoneda)
2018 Photography Prize (Degree Show 2018, Royal College of Art)
2017 International Public Art Short Film Contest nominated, “Art Public – Now you see me”
2012 Yuka Uematsu Prize (Curator, The National Museum of Art, Osaka), Art Award Tokyo Marunouchi 2012

Talks, Conferences and Workshops

2024 TOKAS OPEN SITE 8 ‘I Hear Your Breath’:

Artist Talk / Guest: MASUDA Tomohiro (Curator, The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo) TSUCHIYA Seiichi (Art critic / Associate Professor, Okinawa Prefectural University of Arts)SHIMIZU Tomoko (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Global Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts)

2023 Practice-led Symposium: Dreams and Guilt. Exhibiting Counter-Memories’, Beaconsfield (London)
2021 Symposium, Roundtable Discussion 'Tokyo Biennale 2020 – Live Relations vol.01' Symposium, Roundtable Discussion Organised by Tokyo Biennale 2020/2021

2021 Online talk event, related to Japan Foundation’s online exhibition ‘11 Stories on Distanced Relationships – Contemporary Art’, Speakers: Stuart Tulloch, Rika Noguchi, Hiraki Sawa, Shino Yanai
2019 Conference, Presentaion in ‘Okinawan Art in its Regional Context’, University of East Anglia (Norwich)
2019 artist talk ‘Nationalism and Death’: conversation with Dr. Yoshitaka Mouri (Sociologist, Professor at Tokyo University of the Arts), Kazuko Koike (President of Sagacho Exhibit Space); Sagacho Archives (Tokyo)
2018 ‘Art, Politics and Censorship in Japan and beyond’; Sainsbury institute for the study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (Norwich)
2018 Artist Talk, Camberwell College of Art and Design (London)
2016 Artist talk in ‘Crisis youth get creative: ‘Young Generations in Japan and Europe: Crisis, Mobility and Creativity’ workshop’; Sainsbury institute for the study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (Norwich)
2016 Artist Talk ‘Blue Passages’: conversation with Dr Jonathan Whitewall, Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation (London)
2014 ‘Madness Plays as Metaphor’: conversation related to solo exhibition ‘Utsushi-mi – Ghost Self’, with Seiichi Tsuchiya (Art Critic, Professor at Okinawa Prefectural University of Arts), Dr. Yoshitaka Mouri (Sociologist, Professor at Tokyo University of the Arts); monshirop – Facility of Tokyo University of the Arts (Tokyo)
2014 ‘Art and Nation’, guest lecture hosted by Professor Seiichi Tsuchiya; Okinawa Prefectural University of Arts (Okinawa)

Press

2016 El Punt Avui ‘The Blue Passages’ by Pilar Parcerisas
2012 ART iT ‘End of war in the decade of the 2010s’ by Adrian Favell

Education

2019- current Practice-led PhD Slade School of Fine Art, University College London
2016–18 MA (Distinction) Photography, Royal College of Art
2010–12 MA Inter Media Art, Tokyo National University of the Arts
2004–10 MA / BA Japanese Painting, Tama Art University
1998–2002 BA Music, Instrumental music, Piano major, Kobe College

Selected Exhibitions and Peformances　

2024 TOKAS OPEN SITE 8 ‘I Hear Your Breath’ a performance by Shino Yanai, Tokyo Arts and Space (Tokyo)
2023 A performance by Shino Yanai and Syo Yoshihama, OTOOTO, Tokyo
2022 Solo Exhibition and Performance ‘I Hear Your Breath in 4/4’ Yamamoto Keiko Rochaix (London)
2021 Solo site-specific installation work ‘Well Temperament’ for the Tokyo Biennale 2020/2021 ‘Praying for Tokyo’ curated by Kazuko Koike, artists; Rei Naito, Aiko Miyanaga, Shino Yanai, at Yushima Seido (The Mausoleum of Confucius at Yushima) (Tokyo)
2021 A performance by Shino Yanai and Ken Ikeda at Yushima Seido, Tokyo, as part of Shino Yanai’s exhibition ‘Well Temperament’ for the Tokyo Biennale 2020/2021 'Praying for Tokyo'
2021 Online exhibition “11 Stories on Distanced Relationships: Contemporary Art from Japan" Japan Foundation
2021 “Flowers of Romance” White Conduit Projects (London)
2020 Commissioned solo exhibition ‘Unwated Sound’ curated by Haruka Iharada, part of the project ‘Art in Covid-19’, Goethe-Institut Tokyo
2020 “de-sport: The Deconstruction and Reconstruction of Sports through Art” 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa (Kanazawa, Japan), artists; Allora&Calzadilla, The Eugenne Studio, Charles Freger, Liam Gillick, Christian Jankowski, Gabriel Orozco, Erwin Wurm, Xijing Men, Shino Yanai
2020 “Cherry Blossom Party” eitoeiko (Tokyo)
2020 Commissioned group exhibition ‘Exposing the Bushes’ curated by Haruka Iharada, artists; Kaori Endo, Kaya Hanasaki, Shino Yanai, Tokyo Arts and Space (Tokyo)
2019 ‘erroribus humanis et antinomy’: screening of “Blue Passages” “The Deep End”, talk with Tetuzi Akiyama and Chihei Hatakeyama; OTOOTO (Tokyo)
2019 “Perspectives (2)” Intermediateque, The University Museum, the University of Tokyo (Tokyo)
2019 Commissioned group exhibition ‘Creation and Technique’ Pola Museum Annex (Toyko)
2019 “3331 Art Fair 2019”: selected by Dr. Yoshitaka Mouri (Sociologist, Professor at Tokyo University of the Arts); 3331 Arts Chiyoda - Main Gallery (Toyko)
2019 Commissioned solo exhibition “The Deep End” Sagacho Archives (Tokyo)
2018 “TBCTV”: screening of "Happy and Glorious", Somerset House - Lancaster Room (London)
2018 “The Sky has No Surface” 10a Bridge Street Car park (Berwick-Upon-Tweed)
2018 Screening ‘Happy and Glorious’ in ‘Phantom Limb: AMZ, k28, Ila Brugal, Flemish Bond, Fourth Floor Room + video screenings’ curated by Kathy Cho and KatieYook, Corsica Studio (London)
2018 Group exhibition ‘A Point of No Return | Anthropocene Entity’ White Conduit Projects (London)
2017 Mediarc International Festival of Architecture “Proiezioni sezione Festival Internazionale NowYouSeeMe! Parigi 2017' Le Murate Progetti Arte Contemporanea (Florence)
2017 Performance 'Happening and Surveillance; Cut Piece': collaboration with Mikito Tateisi; Photography Project Space, Royal College of Art (London)
2017 Offprint London, Art Publishing Fair Turbine Hall, Tate Modern (London)
2017 International Public Art Short Film Contest nominated, Journées internationales du film sur l'art, 10e édition; “Art Public – Now you see me” Louvre museum - Auditrium (Paris)
2016 Commissioned solo exhibition “Blue Passages” White Conduit Projects (London)
2016 Commissioned performance “The Blue Passages” Passages - Hommage to Walter Benjamin (Portbou, Spain)
2014 Duo exhibition ‘Comedy and Menace: Birthday Party’: Andro Semeiko & Shino Yanai; White Conduit Projects (London)
2014 Group exhibition ‘Anti – War: Resistance against the Anticipated War’ SNOW Contemporary (Tokyo)
2014 Commissioned group exhibition ‘ego – Re-examining the Self –’ punto (Kyoto)
2014 “Utsushi-mi – Ghost Self”: performance and solo exhibition curated by Haruka Iharada, monsHirop; PARADISE STUDIO, Facility of Tokyo University of the Arts (Tokyo)
2013 Commissioned group exhibition ‘Brave New World – re-enchanting utopia’ artists; Christian Boltanski, Sachiko Kodama, teamLab, Shino Yanai; Aomori Museum of Art (Aomori)
2013 Commissioned group exhibition “WHAT WE SEE” artists; Eija-Liisa Ahtila, Cyprien Gaillard, Johan Grimonprez, Hiraki Sawa, Chia-En Jao, Sojung Jun, Pei-Shih Tu, Steve McQueen, Clemens von Wedemeyer, Shino Yanai; The National Museum of Art (Osaka)
2012 Group exhibition ‘End of war in the decade of the 2010s’ eitoeiko (Tokyo)
2012 ‘Art Award Tokyo Marunouchi 2012’ Marunouchi-building (Tokyo)
2012 Degree show ‘GEIDAI SENTAN 2012’ BankART Studio NYK (Yokohama)
2010 Group exhibition ‘TAMAVIVANⅡ 2010’ Daikanyama Sedona (Tokyo)/ Parthenon Tama (Tokyo)/ Tama Art University (Tokyo)
2009 ‘NIHONGA : New Traditions’ Dillon Gallery (New York)
2008 Exchaange programme ‘International Art&Design Critiques’ Tsinghua University (Beijing)