Explosion Event by Cai Guo-Qiang

Object Details

Creator

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Views

3,260

Video Title

Explosion Event by Cai Guo-Qiang

Description

In celebration of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery's 25th anniversary, Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang stages one of his remarkable "explosion events," a thrilling combination of pyrotechnics, artistry, and optical illusion in four dimensions. A live 40-foot-tall pine tree will erupt in an effervescent shimmer of fireworks as if in a tree-lighting ceremony, followed by a cascade of black ink-like smoke that mimics the flowing beauty of traditional Chinese brush drawings. The tree-shaped cloud of smoke drifting through the air will create a spectral scene of two trees, one real and one ethereal. The event is planned in honor of the Sackler's 25th and Art in Embassies' 50th anniversaries, and is a highlight of both organizations' anniversary week programming. The site-specific staging is part of Cai's larger series of "explosion events," which have been featured at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, DC; Central Park in New York City curated by Creative Time; and numerous international institutions.

Video Duration

2 min 35 sec

YouTube Keywords

Freer sackler freersackler smithsonian asian art museum asia dc nmaa "national museum of asian art"

Uploaded

2012-12-05T19:35:54.000Z

Type

YouTube Videos

See more by

FreerSackler

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

YouTube Channel

FreerSackler

YouTube Category

Entertainment

Topic

Art, Asian

Record ID

yt_ZIjQYwvdWmE

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