Cai Guo-Qiang
Biography
Born in 1957 in Quanzhou, China. Lives and works in New York.
The work of Cai Guo-Qiang draws from both the ancient myths and aesthetic traditions of Chinese culture as well as from the work of contemporary Western science, technology and culture.
He first studied stage design in Shanghai, before leaving his native country in 1986 to pursue further study in Japan. In 1989, he first comes to public attention with Projects for Extraterrestrials, a series of drawings created by exploding gunpowder on Japanese paper. After 1989, the artist begins to organize ambitious and elaborate performance events using gunpowder and fireworks, setting off large explosions in the open sky. These events located in natural or urban settings are full of beauty and drama, and evoke inevitably the forces of chaos and the destructive powers of man. In 1995, Cai Guo-Qiang moves to New York where he currently resides.