Nefis Kebab
Sinaida Michalskaja
26. – 29.03.2026
Volunteers and owners at Nefis Kebab, Charlois, March 2026. Photo: Frans Parthesius
Visitors observing Sinaida Michalskaja's artwork, March 2026. Photo: Frans Parthesius
Sinaida Michalskaja, Fig. 1 A man who claims that another person doesn’t exist imagines another one who claims that another person doesn’t exist (Illustration by Gordon Pask), 2025
Owners and staff of Nefis Kebab, March 2026. Photo: Frans Parthesius
Nefis Kebab, Charlois. Photo: Frans Parthesius
Nefis Kebab is a family-run Turkish restaurant on the Wolphaertsbocht, led by Ayşegül and her daughter Busra. Their cook comes from Hatay, a region known for its rich culinary traditions, and all meat is freshly prepared on site rather than factory-produced. The menu centres on grilled kebab and döner alongside vegetarian options like çiğ köfte. Since opening, the restaurant has quickly become a busy gathering point in the neighbourhood. Visitors could eat at Nefis while encountering a work by Sinaida Michalskaja.
Sinaida Michalskaja also presented an outdoor banner at Attractiepark Rivoli Rotterdam.
Artwork:
Sinaida Michalskaja, Fig. 1 A man who claims that another person doesn’t exist imagines another one who claims that another person doesn’t exist (Illustration by Gordon Pask), 2025
Sinaida Michalskaja's work was presented in collaboration with Shahin Zarinbal Gallery.
Sinaida Michalskaja was born in Moscow and lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Her practice treats paradox as a tool for world-building, merging linguistic observation with sensual experience across sculpture, photography, video, and text. Michalskaja often works with found footage and visual or textual citations, re-contextualising fragments and bringing them into dialogue. Her process is one of rigorous collection: concepts drawn from cybernetics, systems theory, and queer theory are paired with physical artefacts – such as rakes, windows, keys – to guide seemingly incompatible systems into conversation. Circularity is not merely a motif in her work; it shapes its very structure, framing both concept and experience.
Shahin Zarinbal is a contemporary art gallery based in Berlin, working with international artists across generations and disciplines. Since its founding in 2022, the gallery has supported rigorous artistic practices, with a program shaped through ongoing dialogues grounded in the specific concerns and methodologies of the artists’ work. Spanning sculpture, installation, painting, and conceptual practices, the gallery approaches exhibition-making as an active, collaborative process that fosters long-term relationships and an organically growing network of artistic exchange.