Cai Guo Qiang / oral report & bibliography

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Cai Guo-Qiang
INTRODUCTION
■   His inspiration draws upon Eastern philosophy, Maoist sentiment, and contemporary social issues.
■    Renowned for his ability to leverage tension and fear toward a common consideration of the beauty in destruction. (cycle of life)
■   He has established a reputation for creating large-scale installations and elaborate performances using gunpowder and fireworks.
■   Cai's work oftentimes promotes political ideas of revolution and the romance in idealism as a way to encourage people to consider ways to contribute to a more open sense of the world.

   BODY
Inopportune: Stage Two made in 2004 
  • nine life-sized tiger replicas, arrows, Tigers: papier-mâché, plaster, fiberglass, resin,    and painted hide;arrows: brass, threaded bamboo shaft, and feathers.He depicts fearsome wild animals as victims of disturbing acts of violence, hoping to elicit a visceral response through the “aesthetics of pain.” They can be viewed as metaphors for warfare, oppression, and other manifestations of human aggression.
Heritage made in 2013
  •  99 life-sized replicas of animals, water, sand,
  •     In Heritage, ninety-nine animals – both predator and prey, gentle and aggressive – coexist harmoniously, all lowering their heads humbly and drinking from the same pond. Water drips, triggering ripples that underscore the serenity of the space, giving the piece a religious solemnity.All beings should be able to coexist peacefully; unfortunately, the vision is a Shangri-La, and one that can never be realised. I have never been keen on depicting people in my artwork, but a number of my works use animals to comment on humanity.
Crocodile and Sun made in 2007 
  • Cai Guo-Qiang creates ethereal and spontaneous drawings by igniting different types of gunpowder on paper. His use of gunpowder as a medium may be a response to the repressive political and cultural environment in China, the country of his birth. It may also be a choice that pays homage to China’s proud history of invention and achievement, a history that includes the invention of gunpowder. Gunpowder also evokes the dark clouds of war, a common current in his work. What is the impact of war on the natural world. "Destruction and construction, yin and yang, positive and negative; the energy is ever exchanging and altering." With yellows and black
SKY LADDER 

huge white balloon filled with 6,200 cubic meters of helium slowly ascended into the sky above Huiyu Island Harbour, Quanzhou, China. Attached to it was a 500-meter long ladder coated completely with quick burning fuses and gold fireworks that was then ignighted by artist Cai Guo­-Qiang Behind Sky Ladder lies a clear childhood dream of mine. Despite all life’s twists and turns, I have always been determined to realize it. My earlier proposals were either more abstract or ceremonial. Sky Ladder today is tender, and touches my heart deeply: it carries affection for my hometown, my relatives and my friends. In contrast to my other attempts, which set the ignition time at dusk, this time the ladder rose toward the morning sun, carrying hope. For me, this not only means a return but also the start of a new journey.
     REMBRANCE
  •      In Remembrance, colored smoke effects splashed across the sky, as though nostalgically recalling past events and friendships throughout the years.In line with the theme of the exhibition, environmentally safe daytime colored smoke pyrotechnic products are used for the artwork; food coloring, food-grade powders, fabric dyes and other nontoxic materials are used as main ingredients.
SUMMARY
Mr. Cai guo qiang was an innovative artist that used the idea of the creation of art through destruction. He focused on fireworks,gunpowder,and animal skins to make some of his most famous works like sky ladder.Gunpowder, considered to be one of China's most significant contributions to the world, is traditionally bound up not only with medicine and healing, but also with the desire for immortality. In this regard, art critic Ron Rosenbaum claims that Cai "really wants to paint the heavens like Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Only with gunpowder and flame."  Influence by his Chinese heritage and the Chinese oppression he focused on social issues that tackled environmental and social issues.




BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Artworksforchange.org,/Portfolio/"Cai Guo Qiang"

Netflix, "sky ladder" documentary 

Guggenheim.org Cai Guo-Qiang B. 1957, QUANZHOU, FUJIAN PROVINCE, CHINA














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