Chiharu Shiota and Mami Kataoka have been appointed to the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the government of France, with Shiota receiving the degree of Officier and Kataoka the rank of Chevalier. The joint decoration ceremony was officiated by B e9atrice Le Fraper du Hellen, ambassador of France to Japan, on September 8 at the ambassadors official residence in Tokyo.
Chiharu Shiota
Born in Osaka in 1972 and currently based in Berlin, Chiharu Shiota explores ideas of life, death, and human connection through large-scale installation, performance, photography, video, and sculpture. She is renowned for investigations of memory and consciousness that collect ordinary ephemeraeshoes, keys, chairs, and dresseseand entangle them in massive, web-like structures woven from vermillion thread. Shiota has exhibited worldwide and represented Japan at the 56th Venice Biennale in 2015. Her accolades include the 61st Mainichi Art Award in 2020 and the Japan Foundation Award in 2024.
The Soul Trembles (2019), Shiotas largest solo exhibition to date, was curated by Kataoka at the Mori Art Museum and has since toured internationally to eight cities, including the Grand Palais in Paris.
Mami Kataoka
Mami Kataoka joined the Mori Art Museum in 2003 and has served as director since 2020. From 2023 to early 2026, she was director of the National Center for Art Research at Japans National Museum of Art, where she initiated a pilot curator exchange program in collaboration with Pariss Centre Pompidou. Her curatorial leadership extends internationally: she co-directed the ninth Gwangju Biennale in 2012, directed the 21st Biennale of Sydney in 2018, and will co-curate the 2027 Helsinki Biennial. In Tokyo, Kataoka will head the upcoming 2026 Roppongi Art Night, scheduled to open in October, with a Focus program highlighting French contemporary art.
Established in 1957 by the French Ministry of Culture, the Order of Arts and Letters acknowledges individuals who have made significant contributions in arts and literature in France and around the world. The appointments of Shiota and Kataoka underscore that mission as recognized in Tokyo.
