Cai Guo-Qiang

Eslite Gallery, Taipei
Acquired by the present owner from the above

Taipei, Eslite Gallery, Cai Guo-Qiang, April 2005

There is a faint crease in the paper in the lower right part of the work, measuring approximately 45 inches (110 cm) and visible on the catalogue illustration. This crease is inherent to the medium and seems to be original to the work. Otherwise the work is generally in very good condition overall. Framed under Plexiglas, not examined out of frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

With his recent role as Director of Visual and Special Effects for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics, artist Cai Guo-Qiang has truly become recognized as one of our time's most celebrated artists.  The focus of a recent retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City which is currently at the National Arts Museum of China in Beijing and will travel to the Guggenheim Bilbao next spring, Cai has become celebrated for his use of gunpowder and theatrics in his work.  Here, a rare early work titled Catching Fish (Lot 46) from the 1980s exhibits the artist's very early experimentations with gunpowder, a material that he first used to ignite explosions on the surface of paintings.

In this work, we see what appear to be early cave paintings of a fish in the lower left quadrant of the painting and a human stick figure in the lower right corner.  Cai uses black paint on earth-toned ground to depict these simple images; a river-like streak of white stretches across the central portion of the work from left to right.  Cai then coated various areas of the work with gunpowder, which he then ignited to achieve a mottled explosion effect that gives the work the rough-hewn feel of an actual cave wall.  Always fascinated with mythology and human emotion, Cai seems to go back to the very first human experiments with art here in his own early attempts at harnessing the power of fire in his work.

Two Eagles (Lot 45) from 2005 shows Cai as being fully-developed in his use of gunpowder as an artistic medium.  This large-scale explosion drawing depicts two large birds of prey hovering in the sky.  Etched out in gunpowder that the artist laid down on the paper upon which the image is captured, the eagles seem to embody the mythological phoenix rising from the flames.  Formally, the work fully captures the concept of flight; the eagles' wings appear to sweep through the sky—the illusion of movement is right there before us.  A perfect example of Cai Guo-Qiang's signature style, Two Eagles exhibits the artist's fascination between man and nature, power and beauty.   

-Eric Shiner