31IMAGE: CAI GUO-QIANG, HERITAGE (2013), COMMISSIONED BY AND WITH FUNDS FROM THE JOSEPHINE ULRICK AND WIN SCHU-BERT DIVERSITY FOUNDATION THROUGH AND WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY | GALLERY OF MODERN ART FOUNDATION COLLECTION: QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY | GALLERY OF MODERN ART, BRISBANE. PHOTO BY QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY | GALLERY OF MODERN ART
Create:
Cai Guo-Qiang
TEXTBYSUSANNESAYERS.EXCERPTEDFROM 2030 NOW“Iamstillinterestedintheunseenspirituality.Iamnot
thinkingmoreabouttheEarth,oursurroundings,and
thephysicalworld.”
Itisamomentofcompletesilenceandserenity.Ina
curiouslysolemnmanner, 99 animalsbowtheirheads
beforeapoolofalmostperfectlystillwater,untouchedby
eitherwindorwaves.Theonlythingtodisturbthemirror-
likesurfaceisasingledropofwaterfromtheceiling.
Thesceneinstantlyevokesavisionofparadise.It
bringstomindtheverseintheBibleaboutthewolf
andthelambgrazingtogether.Butyousoonstartto
feelunsettled.Whyarealltheseanimalsfromdifferent
continentsgatheredaroundthesamewaterhole?What
arepredatorsandtheirpreydoing
sidebyside?Aretheydyingofthirst?
Havetheylearnedtolivetogether
amicably?Orwilltheyteareachother
apartassoonastheydrinktheirfill,
lifttheirheadsandcatchsightofone
another?
Aretheyreallyanimalsatall,
giventhattheyaremadeofsynthetic
materialsandcoveredindyed
goatskin?Oraretheysymbolic
representationsofhumanbeingsand
therealityofourexistence—thefact
thatwemaybeenemiesattimes,but
wealsofighttosurvivetogether?
TheinstallationHeritage
bytheChineseartistCaiGuo-
Qiangprovidesamplescopefor
int rpretationbutoffersnoeasyanswers.Hisworks
usuallyrevolvearoundthespiritual,thedivine,the
cosmos...butwithHeritagehehasreturned,inhisown
words,toourplanet,ourheritage—aheritagethatwe
willonedaypasson.
Nonetheless,thereisaspiritualelementhere.
AccordingtoCai,theworkexpressesakindoflonging
forthespiritualitythatispalpableintheinkdrawings
ofthescholarsofancientChina,fromatimewhenman
livedhumblyandinharmonywithnature—insharp
contrasttoourmodernworld.
Heritagewasinspiredbyanexperiencethathehad
whilevisitingthesubtropicalAustralianislandofNorth
Stradbroke.
“Astheclearbluewaters,thewhitesandybeaches
ofStradbrokeIsland,andtherichpaletteofcolours
onthebottomofBrownLaketookmybreathaway,I
cametorealisethatthisparadisehighlightedtheserious
problemsonourplanet.EverywhereonEarthshould
havebeenjustasbeautiful.”THE 17 GOALS
1/ No poverty
2/ Zero hunger
3/ Good health and well-being
4/ Quality education
5/ Gender equality
6/ Clean water and sanitation
7/ Affordable and clean energy
8/ Decent work and economic growth
9/ Industry, innovation and infrastructure
10/ Equality within and between countries
11/ Sustainable cities and communities
12/ Responsible consumption and production
13/ Climate action
14/ Life below water
15/ Life on land
16/ Peace, justice and strong institutions
17/ Partnerships for the goals
ARTIFICIAL OASIS
Cai Guo-Qiang’s
installation Heritage
(2013), which is
featured in 2030 NowBook / CONCIERGE