Devan Shimoyama American, b. 1989
Devan Shimoyama (b. 1989, US) is a visual artist whose work explores depictions of the black, queer, male body. Through the medias of painting, sculpture, printmaking and installation, he creates compositions inspired by classical painters such as Francisco Goya, or Caravaggio. However, Shimoyama’s use of materials is distinctly contemporary, as is the subject matter he depicts. He has stated that he wants the figures in his work to be perceived as “both desirable and desirous.” He is aware of the politics of queer culture, and the ways in which those politics relate to black American culture. These elements come together in his works in a way that is both celebratory and complicated.
The celebratory aspects come through in his choice of materials, such as fur, feathers, glitter and costume jewels like rhinestones, and sequins. These materials endow the figures in the works with a sort of magical aura and joyful spirit. Yet, many of the men in Shimoyama’s works also literally have jewels in their eyes, giving them a mystified expression, interrupting the connection between their inner selves and the viewer, and suggesting a sort of silent suffering. Many also shed tears.
Shimoyama was awarded the Al Held Fellowship at the Yale School of Art in 2013 and has had a residency at the 2015 Fire Island Artist Residency. His work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States.
-
Art in Lockdown: Devan Shimoyama
May 12, 2020Art in lockdown interview with Devan ShimoyamaRead more -
"Devan Shimoyama: Cry, Baby" at The Warhol
March 17, 2019'Devan Shimoyama: Cry, Baby' will mark the first museum solo exhibition of Devan Shimoyama, Philadelphia-born painter and professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Spanning his burgeoning...Read more -
Devan Shimoyama in conversation with Mario Brito
Cultured Magazine January 29, 2019How does the simple activity of getting a haircut become so charged with memories that are entangled with identity, personality and the assertion of one’s...Read more
-
Devan ShimoyamaLa Lune, 2019Oil, color pencil, rhinestones, glitter, fabric, sequins, collage and Flashe on canvas84 x 64 x 4 in
213.4 x 162.6 x 10.2 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaThe Star, 2019Oil, color pencil, collage, glitter, jewelry and acrylic on canvas stretched over panel48 x 36 x 3 in
121.9 x 91.4 x 7.6 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaWrong Fit, 2019Oil, collage, color pencil, sequins, jewelry, rhinestones and Flashe on canvas stretched over panel40 x 30 x 2 in
101.6 x 76.2 x 5.1 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaSmoke and Sage , 2019Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel72 x 84 x 2 in
182.9 x 213.4 x 5.1 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaAll Right, One More, 2019Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel48 x 36 x 2 in
121.9 x 91.4 x 5.1 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaAuntie's Ribs and Macaroni Salad, 2019Mixed media on canvas stretched over panel48 x 36 x 2 in
121.9 x 91.4 x 5.1 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaGrandmother's Blessing, 2019Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel72 x 60 in
182.9 x 152.4 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaMichael's New Hair, 2019Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel30 x 24 in
76.2 x 61 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaMull Over , 2019Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel30 x 24 in
76.2 x 61 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaCountdown, 2019Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel60 x 48 in
152.4 x 121.9 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaAn Endless Task , 2019Oil, color pencil, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel84 x 72 in
213.4 x 182.9 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaWeed Picker, 2018Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel84 x 72 x 3 in
213.4 x 182.9 x 7.6 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaNightshade Harvest, 2018Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel84 x 72 x 3 in
213.4 x 182.9 x 7.6 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaPotted, 2018Oil, color pencil, Flashe, rhinestones, acrylic, collage and glitter on canvas stretched over panel
72 x 84 in
182.9 x 213.4 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaUntitled, 2019Silk flowers, beads, and rhinestones on fabric with steel mount and frame92 x 156 x 3 in
233.7 x 396.2 x 7.6 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaFebruary, 2018Silk flowers, beads, and rhinestones on fabric with steel mount and frameDimensions variable
wing span 75", and it's 50" tall with a depth of 10" -
Devan ShimoyamaTamir III, 2018Chains, silk flowers, rhinestones, beads, and fabric on swing seatDimensions variable
-
Devan ShimoyamaTamir V, 2019Chains, silk flowers, rhinestones, beads, and fabric on swing seatSeat : 17 x 8 x 1 in 43.2 x 20.3 x 2.5 cm
Chain dimension variable -
Devan ShimoyamaTamir VI, 2019Chains, silk flowers, rhinestones, beads, and fabric on swing seatDimensions variable
-
Devan ShimoyamaTamir VII, 2019Chains, silk flowers, rhinestones, beads, and fabric on swing seat
Dimensions variable -
Devan ShimoyamaTamir VIII, 2019Chains, silk flowers, rhinestones, beads, and fabric on swing seat
Dimensions variable -
Devan ShimoyamaUntitled (For Tamir), 2019Chains, silk flowers, rhinestones, beads, and fabric on swing seats, industrial steel swingset, mirrored plexi platform, and wood96 x 82 x 158 in
243.8 x 208.3 x 401.3 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaBobby, 2019Oil, acrylic, color pencil, collage, glitter, feathers and jewelry on canvas stretched over panel48 x 36 in
121.9 x 91.4 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaGabi, 2019Oil, acrylic, color pencil, collage, sequins, glitter and jewelry on canvas stretched over panel48 x 36 in
121.9 x 91.4 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaCookie, 2018Oil, color pencil, and mixed media on canvas stretched over panel48 x 38 in
121.9 x 96.5 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaNot Too Close, 2018Oil, color pencil, and mixed media on canvas stretched over panel40 x 30 in
101.6 x 76.2 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaMighty Mighty Style Guide (Children), 2019Silkscreen collage with glitter and rhinestones on paper
40 x 30 in
101.6 x 76.2 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaMighty Mighty Style Guide (Ladies), 2019Silkscreen collage with glitter and rhinestones on paper40 x 30 in
101.6 x 76.2 cm -
Devan ShimoyamaMighty Mighty Style Guide (Gentlemen), 2019Silkscreen collage with glitter and rhinestones on paper
40 x 30 in
101.6 x 76.2 cm
-
Tell Me Your Story
Kunsthal KAde | Netherlands 8 Feb - 30 Aug 2020Tell Me Your Story is an original exhibition of work that will debut at the Kunsthal KAdE in Amersfoort, The Netherlands, on February 08th, 2020. Kavi Gupta artists Devan Shimoyama, Gerald Williams, and Wadsworth Jarrell will be included in the exhibition.Read more -
Devan Shimoyama, The Barbershop Project: Mighty Mighty
THEARC | Washington, DC 4 May - 24 Aug 2019In celebration of CulturalDC’s 20th Anniversary Season, Devan Shimoyama’s Mighty Mighty forms the centerpiece of The Barbershop Project, “a multidisciplinary arts activation inspired by the performance of styling, art of hair and shop culture.Read more -
Devan Shimoyama, We Named Her Gladys
Kavi Gupta | 835 W. Washington St. Chicago, IL, 60607 23 Mar - 18 May 2019Kavi Gupta presents We Named Her Gladys a solo exhibition of new work by Devan Shimoyama. We Named Her Gladys is a bold new body of painting and sculpture inspired by his evolving connections to identity, ancestry, community, and the definition of home.Read more
Devan Shimoyama, We Named Her Gladys
03.23.2019 — 05.18.2019
Kavi Gupta presents a solo exhibition of new work by Devan Shimoyama, whose recent debut museum exhibition, Cry, Baby, at the Andy Warhol Museum, was acclaimed by The New York Times, GQ, Hyperallergic, and many other critical voices. For his inaugural solo exhibition at Kavi Gupta, Shimoyama presents a bold new body of painting and sculpture inspired by his evolving connections to identity, ancestry, community, and the definition of home.
Shimoyama recently became a first time homeowner, purchasing a 1926 Craftsman home in the borough of Brentwood on the outskirts of Pittsburgh. Says Shimoyama, “The house is made of a classic, golden yellow brick that was developed in Pittsburgh. It’s a very Pittsburgh house.” Since moving in, tiny moments of discovery both inside and outside of the house have pulled Shimoyama backwards in time, moving him to grapple with the mythos of ownership, the discovery of secrets, and the ways history intertwines and negotiates with the present. Says Shimoyama, “This body of work has grown out of me thinking about how significant and important it is to own where you live; to maintain and tend to it. Many young people, especially young people of color, shy away from home ownership. This is negative in a lot of ways.” -
Devan Shimoyama, Cry Baby
Warhol Museum | Pittsburgh, PA 13 Oct - 13 Mar 2018Devan Shimoyama: Cry, Baby will mark the first museum solo exhibition of Devan Shimoyama, Philadelphia-born painter and professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Spanning his burgeoning career, this exhibition includes painting,...Read more
-
UNRAVELING THE TANGLED HISTORY OF THE HOODIE READ
Brigit Katz, Smart News: Smithsonia.com, December 14, 2019 -
“THE HOODIE” EXHIBITION EXPLORES THE GARMENT’S ROLE AS A SOCIO-POLITICAL CARRIER
Keith Estiler, Hypebeast, November 22, 2019 -
THIS D.C. BARBERSHOP AND ART GALLERY OFFERS INSIGHT INTO THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY ALONGSIDE FREE HAIRCUTS
Hannah Natansan, The Washington Post, August 20, 2019 -
THREE YEAR SMITHSONIAN EXHIBITION TO HIGHLIGHT MEN OF COLOUR AND THEIR IMPACT ON HISTORY
Katherine Keener, Art-Critique, July 9, 2019 -
NINA CHANEL ABNEY PACKS A VISUAL “PUNCH” IN MASSIVE LA EXHIBITION
Keith Estiler, Hypebeast, July 2, 2019 -
NEW SMITHSONIAN TRAVELING EXHIBITION PROFILES REVOLUTIONARY AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN
Webwire, Webwire, June 11, 2019 -
‘THEY’RE NOT NECESSARILY WELCOMING’ | ARTIST CHALLENGES HYPERMASCULINITY IN BLACK BARBERSHOPS WITH EXHIBIT IN ANACOSTIA
Michael Quander, WUSA9 Washington D.C., May 15, 2019 -
MIGHTY MIGHTY ART INSTALLATION IS CENTERPIECE OF BARBERSHOP PROJECT AT THEARC
George Kevin Jordan, AFRO, May 15, 2019 -
REQUIRED READING
Hrag Vartanian, HYPERALLERGIC, May 15, 2019 -
DC ART EXHIBIT FEATURES BARBERSHOP, FREE HAIRCUTS THROUGHOUT THE SUMMER
Madeline Simon, WTOP News, May 5, 2019 -
AROUND AMERICA’S DINNER TABLE
Merrell Hambleton, The New York TImes Style Magazine, April 10, 2019 -
CLOSE TO HOME: DEVAN SHIMOYAMA ON HIS GLIMMERING, INCISIVE PORTRAITS AT KAVI GUPTA GALLERY IN CHICAGO
Claire Voon, ARTnews, April 4, 2019 -
ART TOP 5: APRIL 2019
Elliot Reichert, New CIty, April 2, 2019 -
ARTIST DEVAN SHIMOYAMA PUTS GLITTER ALL OVER TOXIC MASCULINITY
Raquel Willis, Out Magazine, March 18, 2019 -
THIS IS NO TIME TO CRY WITH DEVAN SHIMOYAMA
Maria Brito Co-Produced and Co-Edited by Peter Koloff and Maria Brito, Cultured, February 1, 2019 -
ARTIST DEVAN SHIMOYAMA TAKES ON RACE AND SEXUALITY WITH GLITTER AND RHINESTONES
Noah Johnson, GQ Magazine, January 15, 2019 -
PITTSBURGH REPORT: FIVE PLACES FOR HEALING THROUGH ART
Martha Schwendner, The New York TImes, January 2, 2019 -
5 OUTSTANDING DISCOVERIES AT MIAMI ART WEEK’S SATELLITE FAIRS
Andrew Goldstein, ARTNET, December 8, 2018 -
THE EMERGENCE OF A BRASH YOUNG PAINTER
David Carrier and Graham Shearing, HYPERALLERGIC, December 8, 2018 -
SEVEN ARTISTS ON THE WARHOL INFLUENCE (EXCERPT)
Autwaun Sargent, New York Times, November 1, 2018 -
THE ANDY WARHOL MUSEUM WOWS WITH THE GLITTER AND GRIT OF DEVAN SHIMOYAMA: CRY, BABY
Amanda Waltz, Pittsburgh City Paper, October 24, 2018 -
DEVAN SHIMOYAMA WITH HIS 2018 WORK 11 ‘CRY, BABY’: DEVAN SHIMOYAMA’S YOUNG CAREER TAKES OFF WITH SOLO SHOW AT THE WARHOL
M. THOMAS, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, October 19, 2018 -
THE PAINTER REIMAGINING RARELY SEEN WARHOL WORK WITH BLACK DRAG QUEENS
Lexi Manatakis, DAZED, October 12, 2018 -
ARTIST EMBRACES ALTERNATIVE PERSPECTIVES ON RACE
Andrew Ptaschinski, Carnegie Mellon University, October 9, 2018 -
WARHOL MUSEUM DRAWS PARALLELS WITH DEVAN SHIMOYAMA’S “CRY, BABY”
Amanda Reed, Pittsburgh Current, October 9, 2018 -
EVEN AS BREXIT LOOMS, GALLERIES NOTCH SALES ON FRIEZE LONDON’S OPENING DAY (EXCERPT)
Judd Tully, ARTnews, October 3, 2018 -
A GOOD YEAR FOR YOUNGER ARTISTS, IMMIGRANT CITIZENS AND OUTRAGE IMAGE
Holland Cotter, New York Times, September 9, 2018 -
FROM MARK BRADFORD IN BALTIMORE TO VICTOR HUGO IN LA: 33 MUSEUM SHOWS AROUND THE US WORTH TRAVELING FOR (EXCERPT)
Caroline Goldsten and Sarah Cascone, Artnet News, September 5, 2018 -
ANDY WARHOL’S TRANS SUBJECTS FINALLY GET NAMED (EXCERPT)
Elizabeth Hoover, Paper, August 24, 2018 -
From the Personal to the Political, 19 Artists to Watch Next Year
Holland Cotter, New York Times, December 27, 2017 -
GAY ARTIST REIMAGINES THE ‘HYPER-MASCULINE’ BLACK BARBERSHOP
Kevin Truong, NBC News, November 28, 2017 -
‘DEVAN SHIMOYAMA/SALOMÓN HUERTA’: TWO ARTISTS’ PORTRAITS OF THE SOUL
David Pagel, The Los Angeles Times, January 21, 2016
-
KAVI GUPTA AT ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH 2019
12.19.2019Thank you to everyone who helped us have a spectacular week at Art Basel Miami Beach 2019!Read more -
DEVAN SHIMOYAMA’S BARBERSHOP PROJECT OPENS IN D.C.
05.14.2019A flood of great press has been coming out celebrating Devan Shimoyama for his innovative and engaging Barbershop Project, which opened on May 4th, 2019 in Washington, DC.Read more -
DEVAN SHIMOYAMA GETS NEW YORK TIMES SHOUT OUT
01.08.19New York Times Article on Devan ShimoyamaRead more -
EXHIBITIONS TO SEE THIS FALL
09.12.18Fall 2018 Exhibitions featuring Jeffrey Gibson, Glenn Kaino, and Devan ShimoyamaRead more