Cai Guo-Qiang

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26 Contemporary Chinese Artists Explore Materiality in 'Allure of Matter'

…Weiwei (previously), Hu Xiaoyuan, and Cai Guo-Qiang (previously), are engaging with that provocative tradition through their multi-media works that often fill entire rooms, like gu wenda‘s human hair structure that is suspended from the ceiling. “Their monumental works represent a multifaceted phenomenon that inspires us to ask big questions about our relationship to the everyday material world around us as well as the interrelationship between Chinese art and broader trends in contemporary art globally,” co-curator Orianna Cacchione said. If you’re in Chicago, make sure to check out the exhibition at both the Smart Museum and Wrightwood 659 before it closes…

Art

Murmuration: 10,000 Porcelain Birds Create a Calligraphic Landscape at the National Gallery of Victoria

All images courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria As part of a new large-scale exhibit at Australia’s National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang (previously) has created a swarm of 10,000 porcelain birds, titled Murmuration (Landscape). The multi-part winter exhibition at the museum combines Cai’s contemporary work with the display of a selection of China’s famed ancient terracotta warriors. Cai, who is best known for his enormous artworks that utilize fireworks, assembled the vast quantity of birds and smudged them black with gunpowder. The installation fills an entire gallery and the birds are suspended to create a…

Art

A Pyrotechnic Artwork by Cai Guo-Qiang Explodes into a Blossom on the Steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art

images via chrisstorb In 2009, Cai Guo-Qiang was commissioned by the Philadelphia Museum of Art to create a site-specific explosion event on the front facade of the museum. The project, titled Fallen Blossoms , used a gunpowder fuse, metal net, and scaffolding to activate a blossom pattern for 60 seconds, temporarily setting the columns of the building ablaze. The fuse for the flower was lit on December 11 at sunset for a large audience. The title for the event and corresponding exhibition is derived from a classical Chinese proverb “hua kai hua luo” which comments on the extreme loss felt…

Art

A Herd of 99 Lifelike Animals Drink From a Pool at QAGOMA

…Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Head On, 2006. 99 life-sized replicas of wolves and glass wall. Wolves: gauze, resin, and hide. Dimensions variable. Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Artist Cai Guo-Qiang sculpting an animal for Heritage. Photograph: Cai Canhuang. Artist Cai Guo-Qiang sculpting an animal for Heritage. Photograph: Cai Canhuang. Inspired by a trip to Stradbroke Island in Australia back in 2011, artist Cai Guo-Qiang began work on his newest large-scale installation, Heritage, a flock of 99 life-size replicas of wild animals including giraffes, pandas, lions, tigers, and kangaroos drinking from a…