Cai Guo-Qiang

Often ephemeral and monumental, his work reflects ancient philosophical, religious and aesthetic tradition. Whether through his works on paper made with gunpowder, or by the use of Chinese medicinal plants, the collaboration with a  Taoist shaman from Sichuan or his referencing of feng shui, Cai Guo-Qiang has developed a body of work that is both polymorphous and deeply coherent, and reflects the three spheres of Chinese thought: Heaven, Earth and Humanity.

In 1993, Cai Guo-Qiang took up residency at the Fondation Cartier, then located in Jouy-en-Josas. HIs work was featured in the exhibitions Azur (1993) and Un monde réel (1999), before being made the subject of a major solo exhibition, the first in France, in 2000. In it he presented a series of huge drawings made with gunpowder on paper, then mounted on panel wood screens. He went on to collaborate regularly with the Fondation Cartier, like during the Le Grand Orchestre des Animaux exhibition (2016-2017). He created, especially for the occasion, an 18-metre-long drawing depicting wild animals of all species gathered around a watering hole, in a moment of peace and extreme vulnerability.