Born 1967. B.F.A., Tama Art University, Tokyo, 1991.

In her video installation, Tricky, Hiroko Shimizu plays with our fascination with illusion, using animated shadows. Deceptively guileless, the installation features a figure with mouse-like ears who plays the role of magician. We see only his shadow, spotlit on a small tiered stage, as he performs his various tricks: whipping aside his magic cloth, he reveals an oversized spider dancing on his arms; gesturing with his wand, he is joined on stage by a sexy female attendant. Shimizu is attracted to animation’s ability to present illusory actions in a realistic fashion. Simple yet profound, the video presents a magician’s silent, endless reenactment of his all-too-brief repertoire—lasting only two minutes—again and again, reminding us of the basic human need to subscribe to the maxim "seeing is believing."