Gunpowder drawing created for auction

2013-09-26 15:05

By (chinadaily.com.cn)

Homeland created by Quanzhou artist Cai Guoqiang will go under hammer at Christie's debut auction on September 26, 2013. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Inspired by his hometown's past, as well as its present, Quanzhou artist Cai Guoqiang created a gunpowder drawing on paper on a live show in Shanghai on Wednesday.

The work, Homeland, was mounted on an eight-paneled wood screen measuring 2.42 meters and 7.44 meters.

It will go under the hammer at Christie's debut auction on Thursday night. The proceeds will benefit the Quanzhou Museum of Contemporary Art, behind which Cai is the mastermind.

The drawing depicts the East and West Pagodas, two landmarks that towered over the glories of Quanzhou, Fujian province. It was a famous and busy harbor and the starting point of a maritime Silk Road. He juxtaposes them with Frank Gehry's phantom-like design of the QMOCA, which he expects to be a representation of the city's cultural renaissance.

"Quanzhou is still a place that inspires me. I hope to encourage and inspire more people in art and leave a lasting legacy for the next millennium," he said.

He hoped the performance and the sale will bring more donations to the project.

Cai also produced a gunpowder drawing in the wake of Taiwan's Sept 21 earthquake in 1999, and sold it at a charity auction for the relief work.

"Cai's support and participation in our inaugural auction has provided a great opportunity to further promote contemporary art in China," said Christie's chief executive officer Steven Murphy.

"We look forward to engaging with, and inspiring, more talented Chinese artists through our business and operations, and introducing more Chinese contemporary art to the global stage."