INCCA (Book) Talk: Rachel Rivenc on Cai Guo-Qiang: The Artist’s Materials

INCCA

We warmly invite you to two very special INCCA events focusing on the work of renowned artist Cai Guo-Qiang.

The first is a talk by Rachel Rivenc presenting the in-depth research project she did on the artist, his life, materials, processes, and the conservation of his work. The artist will be present and will offer his thoughts on the project, as well as take questions from the audience. The talk and conversation will be hosted by Tom Learner. This event will be held online on 8th June 2026 9am PST (5pm BST, 6pm CET, 1am Seoul).The second is a special interest meeting on 15th June 2026 for a small group of conservators to discuss the conservation challenges of Cai Guo-Qiang’s unusual materials behind closed doors. This will be limited to 15 people, held online at 8am LA (4pm BST, 5pm CET).Sign up to both events below.Cai Guo-Qiang (born in China, based in New York City) is a prominent contemporary artist known for his subversive materials, especially gunpowder. His signature use of gunpowder as an artistic medium evolved from a traditional painting practice. Over his four decades of engagement with gunpowder, this explosive material has come to define Cai’s work. Its partly unpredictable properties shape the artistic process and determine the outcome. Through this medium, the artist invites uncontrollable forces to participate in the creation of his work. His artistic practice, however, is prolific and diverse, and oftentimes site specific. It includes gunpowder drawings and paintings, explosion events, videos, installations, public art, as well as works with new technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), NFTs, blockchain, and artificial intelligence (AI). His work draws on a personal belief system that freely blends symbols and tenets from different cultures, integrating Chinese traditions such as Taoism and feng shui, while engaging in dialogue with global art histories. Cai’s work seeks to establish dialogues among different cultures, different periods of time, different species—always while probing our shared humanity and the connections that can be divined across space and time, out of chaos and disorder.Dr Rachel Rivenc is the Head of Conservation and Preservation at the Getty Research Institute. She is a conservator and technical art historian whose research interest focuses on the materials and processes used by contemporary artists, how they impact their work and artistic direction, and the conservation challenges they pose. She recently published her book <a href="https://shop.getty.edu/products/cai-guo-qiang-the-artist-s-materials-978-1606069493" title="https://shop.getty.edu/products/cai-guo-qiang-the-artist-s-materials-978-1606069493" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Cai Guo-Qiang: The Artist’s Materials</a>, which came out in June 2025.To participate on 8th June 2026, please sign up through EventBrite. English live captions will be available with Spanish AI translation. For the special interest meeting, please email info@incca.org with details of your experience with Cai Guo-Qiang’s work and case studies you wish to discuss. We appreciate many may wish to join to listen to the discussion, but we ask that you only reach out if you have personal experience working with Cai Guo-Qiang’s work. Image credit: Ignition of the gunpowder painting White Tone at Brookhaven, New York, 2016. Photo by Wen-You Cai, courtesy Cai Studio

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INCCA (Book) Talk: Rachel Rivenc on Cai Guo-Qiang: The Artist’s Materials

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