Cai Guo-Qiang: Exploding the Self
September 3, 2021
Following the success of his record-setting debut NFT drop, artist Cai Guo-Qiang is releasing a second NFT in an online sale hosted by TR Lab—a small surprise for the NFT community. The sale, which begins on September 3rd at 9 AM ET, consists of 99 editions of Exploding the Self. Each edition is priced at 999 USD, in an endeavor to make Cai’s latest work accessible to a wider audience. The proceeds from the sale will go towards the Rockbund Art Museum in support of the museum’s education programs.
Cai Guo-Qiang: Odyssey and Homecoming
Museum of Art Pudong, Shanghai
July 8, 2021–March 7, 2022
The Museum of Art Pudong (MAP), located beside the Oriental Pearl television tower in Shanghai, will open its doors to the public for the first time on July 8, 2021. Designed by the renowned Ateliers Jean Nouvel, MAP aspires to become a new landmark of Shanghai’s cultural landscape and a platform for international exchange of arts and culture. For its inaugural program, the museum will present three major exhibitions: Light: Works from Tate’s Collection; Joan Miro. Women, Birds, Stars; Cai Guo-Qiang: Odyssey and Homecoming.
Touring from the Palace Museum in Beijing where it opened last December, Odyssey and Homecoming features 119 of Cai’s signature gunpowder paintings and other works, including his widely acclaimed first-ever VR work Sleepwalking in the Forbidden City. The works in the exhibition represent Cai’s research, exploration, and voyage across the globe, recreating his Individual’s Journey Through Western Art History project for audiences in China.
Cai Guo-Qiang: Transient Eternity
July 14–August 14, 2021
Rockbund Art Museum (RAM), Shanghai, is delighted to announce the official launch of its brand-new digital platform RAM+, partnering with TR Lab, a pioneering platform dedicated to the discovery of NFT art from the world’s leading artists. Ten years after their first collaboration, RAM is honored to once again work with artist Cai Guo-Qiang, who curated its inaugural exhibition in 2010. On the occasion of RAM’s 10th anniversary, Cai has created his first Non-Fungible Token (NFT) project Transient Eternity—101 Ignitions of Gunpowder Paintings. Beginning July 14 at 9 PM (Beijing time, UTC+8), the artwork will be featured in a 48-hour charity auction on the TR Lab platform (trlab.com), on view until August 14, 2021.
Fireflies
Downtown Coral Gables, Florida
February 12–March 14, 2021
When invited to curate and produce Illuminate Coral Gables, Chief curator Lance Fung made two immediate calls: Cai Guo-Qiang and Kiki Smith. Both art luminaries agreed to participate. “Fireflies is one of the most successful and historic public artworks I have been a part of. It is about bringing people together, sharing stories, reinforcing the value of community, all while being a deeply conceptual artwork by embracing different cultures and the actual general public it is meant to serve,” states Fung.
Twenty-seven American-made pedicabs are transformed into kinetic and interactive sculptures through 1000 handmade silk Chinese lanterns and the brilliance of Cai Guo-Qiang. These interactive sculptures are visible in the evening and in all cases do what great art should do – provide an experience. Although the viewer from afar or rider from within may have varying interpretations, Fireflies mai
Photo (left) by John Talley Photography; courtesy of Fung Collaboratives/Illuminate Coral Gables