Title: Falling Back To Earth

Posted In: Exhibition

Artist: Cai Guo-Qiang

Duration: 23 November 2013 to 11 May 2014

Venue: Gallery of Modern Art / GOMA

The first Australian solo exhibition of celebrated Chinese artist and curator  Cai Guo-Qiang  (known for his gunpowder paintings, firework events and surreal animal sculptures) is now on display at  Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art  ( QAGOMA ) in  Brisbane , Australia . The exhibition, titled  Falling Back to Earth , is based on the idea of ‘‘ going home ,’’ in other words, returning to the harmonious relationship between man and nature and includes packs of life-size animal sculptures, a pond filled with 170 tonnes of water and a real eucalyptus tree hanging indoors. 

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957) Heritage 2013 99 life-sized replicas of animals, water, sand, drip mechanism Installed dimensions variable Commissioned for the exhibition ‘Falling Back to Earth’, 2013. Proposed for the Queensland Art Gallery Collection with funds from the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Diversity Foundation through and with the assistance of the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art Foundation Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art

The making of Heritage 2013 Photo by Cai Canhuang, courtesy Cai Studio.

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957) Heritage 2013 99 life-sized replicas of animals, water, sand, drip mechanism Installed dimensions variable Commissioned for the exhibition ‘Falling Back to Earth’, 2013. Proposed for the Queensland Art Gallery Collection with funds from the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Diversity Foundation through and with the assistance of the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art Foundation Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art

The making of Heritage 2013 Photo by Cai Canhuang, courtesy Cai Studio.

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957) Heritage 2013 99 life-sized replicas of animals, water, sand, drip mechanism Installed dimensions variable Commissioned for the exhibition ‘Falling Back to Earth’, 2013. Proposed for the Queensland Art Gallery Collection with funds from the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Diversity Foundation through and with the assistance of the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art Foundation Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art The exhibition boasts two new commissions created especially for this event. For the first one, ‘‘ Heritage ’’ (2013), 1100 square meters of exhibition space have been transformed into an indoor pond lined with white sand, around which 99 replicas of animals are set drinking water peacefully. The second one, ‘‘ Eucalyptus ’’ (2013), sees a real eucalyptus tree occupying  GOMA ’s central gallery, with seating available for visitors to observe and meditate. According to the exhibition’s curator  Russell Storer , the new commissions drew on the striking beauty of Queensland’s landscapes and the exquisite imagery in historical Chinese painting and poetry, to express concerns regarding the ecological and social issues of our time.

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957), Head On 2006 99 life-sized replicas of wolves and glass wall. Wolves: gauze, resin, and hide Dimensions variable Deutsche Bank Collection, commissioned by Deutsche Bank AG Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art 蔡國強 1957, 年生於中國泉州;長居美國紐約 《撞牆》2006 99 條真實大小的狼複製品、玻璃牆。 狼:混凝紙糊、石膏、玻璃纖維、樹脂和毛皮。 尺寸不定 德意志銀行收藏 Natasha Harth 攝,昆士蘭美術館暨現代美術館 提 供 In addition to the new commissions, the exhibition includes the notorious ‘‘ Head On ’’ installation from 2006 (where a pack of 99 wolves run into a glass wall),  a Tea Pavilion  (where people can sample tea from Guo-Qiang’s hometown and watch a documentary about the making of the exhibition) and an interactive installation for children. Alongside the main exhibition, a detailed chronology of  Guo-Qiang ’s work, including early works, ephemera, photographs and artefacts selected by the artist from his private collection and the  QAGOMA  Research Library, will be presented in the  GOMA  Foyer. A publication (including photographs of the new installations and essays by leading curators and critics) is expected to be released in January 2014. Falling Back to Earth  will be on show exclusively at the  Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, Australia  ( GOMA ) from 23 November 2013 to 11 May 2014.

The making of Heritage 2013 Photo by Cai Canhuang, courtesy Cai Studio.

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957), Head On 2006 99 life-sized replicas of wolves and glass wall. Wolves: gauze, resin, and hide Dimensions variable Deutsche Bank Collection, commissioned by Deutsche Bank AG Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art 蔡國強 1957, 年生於中國泉州;長居美國紐約 《撞牆》2006 99 條真實大小的狼複製品、玻璃牆。 狼:混凝紙糊、石膏、玻璃纖維、樹脂和毛皮。 尺寸不定 德意志銀行收藏 Natasha Harth 攝,昆士蘭美術館暨現代美術館 提 供

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957), Eucalyptus 2013 Spotted gum (Corymbia maculata), wooden stools, paper and pencils Length: 3150cm (approx.) Commissioned for the exhibition ‘Falling Back to Earth’, 2013 Photograph: Natasha Harth, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art 蔡國強, 1957 年生於中國泉州;長居美國紐約 《桉樹》2013 斑皮桉樹 (Corymbia maculata),木凳,紙,鉛 筆 ;長約 3150 公分 昆士蘭美術館暨現代美術館為《歸去來兮》展覽委 託製作因地制宜裝置作品 Natasha Harth 攝,昆士蘭美術館暨現代美術館 提 供

Cai Guo-Qiang (China b.1957), Tea Pavilion 2013 Spotted gum (Corymbia maculata), wooden stools, Fujian Tie Guan Yin tea and video documentary Commissioned for the exhibition ‘Falling Back to Earth’, 2013 Photo by Yuyu Chen, courtesy Cai Studio. 蔡國強 1957 年生於中國泉州;長居美國紐約 《茶庭》2013 斑皮桉樹 (Corymbia maculata),木凳,福建鐵觀 音茶,錄像 昆士蘭美術館暨現代美術館為《歸去來兮》展覽委 託製作因地制宜裝置作品、 陳昱羽摄,蔡工作室提供

Cai Guo-Qiang in front of installation Eucalyptus at the Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, Australia, 2013. Photo by Yuyu Chen, courtesy Cai Studio. 蔡国强站在裝置作品《桉樹》前,布里斯班現代美 術館,澳洲,2013 年 陳昱羽摄,蔡工作室提供