TEA PAVILION 2013
River Room
Conceived by Cai Guo-Qiang,
Tea Pavilion
provides an
opportunity to pause, rest and reflect on the works
in the exhibition. Visitors can sample Tie Guan Yin
tea from Cai’s home province of Fujian, and view a
documentary created especially for ‘Falling Back
to Earth’, which explores the artist’s processes and
history with the Gallery.
Fujian is renowned for its tea and produces 50
different varieties, of which Tie Guan Yin is the most
famous. The modesty of this brew expresses the
virtue of humility, while its offering is a gesture of
generosity and respect for others. At the centre of tea
culture in China is attention given to the harmony of
nature, as expressed in the tea ceremony which can
be experienced in the space every Sunday.
The
gongfu
tea ceremony, with its flowing movements
and emphasis on skill and effort, is designed to
enhance appreciation for the flavour and aroma of the
tea. Key to the ceremony is valuing the time and care
taken in the preparation of the tea for consumption,
in which an analogy can be made with the processes
of reading literature or philosophy and experiencing
art. Cai’s work can be enjoyed for the immediacy
of its visual impact, but, like the tea, is intended
to be savoured — its implications lend themselves
to slower, longer-term consideration.
HEAD ON 2006
Gallery 1.3
Like
Heritage
,
Head On
is made up of 99 replica
animals, although in a markedly different
configuration. The horizontal ring of animals in
Heritage
is echoed in this work’s graceful vertical
loop of wolves hurling themselves into the air, only
to hit a glass wall before returning to the beginning.
The work was originally created for an exhibition at
the Deutsche Guggenheim in 2006 and was inspired
by Berlin’s turbulent history. The Berlin Wall, which
divided the city during the Cold War era, is referenced
in the scale of the glass panel. The accompanying
video
Illusion II
is based on the explosion of a
recreated ‘typical German house’, located on an
empty lot next to the remains of a train station
destroyed during World War II.
Head On
also makes broader statements about
human nature. Gaining power and momentum
through unity, the wolves appear heroic as they
leap toward the unknown. There is the implication
that if we blindly follow ideology, or misdirect our
strength toward a collective goal, there can be
damaging consequences. The resilience of the wolves
hints at our difficulty in learning from our mistakes.
The transparent glass wall suggests that we may not
even be aware that an obstacle is there, or know who
put it in place, yet it remains impenetrable – invisible
barriers can be, the artist says, ‘the hardest walls
to destroy’.
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