At noon on June 26, contemporary artist Cai Guo-Qiang, whose exhibition "Cai Guo-Qiang: Space Journey—Beginning with the Primordial Fireball" is currently on display at the National Art Center, Tokyo, brought to life his "White Sky Fireworks: A Day When Cherry Blossoms Bloom in the Sky" at Shikura Beach in Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture.

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This area was devastated by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Inspired by Cai Guo-Qiang's admiration for art and forward-thinking vision, Anthony Vaccarello commissioned this fireworks project for Saint Laurent, which supports exceptional creativity beyond fashion, and it was organized by Iwaki's "Manten no Sakura Jikkokai."

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For approximately 30 minutes, 40,000 fireworks were launched onto a spectacular stage measuring 400 meters wide and 120 meters high between the sea and sky, creating a magnificent spectacle. This event, the first daytime fireworks display in Japan, also served as a prelude to the solo exhibition "Cai Guo-Qiang: Space Journey – Beginning with the Primordial Fireball," opening on June 29th at the National Art Center, Tokyo.

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Cai lived in Japan for approximately nine years, beginning in December 1986. In 1988, he arrived in Iwaki, Fukushima, a seaside town that would become a special place in his life and art, and furthermore, his "revolutionary base" in Japan, a place he could consider a home away from home. In 1993, Tsai lived on Iwaki's Shikura Coast for seven months, preparing for his first solo exhibition at a public art museum in Japan, "From the Pacific Rim." He created the work in collaboration with local residents, based on the concept of "cultivating art on this land, engaging in dialogue with the universe from here, and creating a story of the times together with the people here."

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In 1994, Tsai's explosive event, "Horizon Project: From the Pacific Rim: Project No. 14 for Extraterrestrials," was realized by bundling five rapid-fire wires together to create a 5,000-meter-long explosive line on the pitch-black ocean surface. The flash of the gunpowder explosion traveled across the boundary between sky and sea, drawing the outline of the Earth. The work's spirit of dialogue with the universe resonated with local residents, who participated in the project and supported its creation by purchasing fuses for 1,000 yen per meter. Furthermore, during the explosion, each household volunteered to turn off their lights, helping to ensure the Earth's outline stood out more beautifully and was visible from space.

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For over 30 years since, Tsai and his Iwaki colleagues have set sail together from their small fishing village, ventured out into the world, and grown together, working together. Meanwhile, both Tsai and her friends are beginning to show signs of graying, and their movements are becoming less agile. This longstanding friendship has transcended political and historical differences between nations through art.

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"A Sky Full of Cherry Blossoms" began solemnly as a requiem for the victims of the earthquake and tsunami. "Black Waves" confronted the pain of the past, while a white "Memorial Monument" symbolized a grand memorial to the suffering of pandemics and war. In the second half, specially commissioned pink fireworks created a romantic cloud of cherry blossoms, conveying dreams and hope to the people. The cherry blossom fireworks are linked to the "Iwaki 10,000 Cherry Blossoms Project," which was started by Tsai's friends in Iwaki after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. The project evokes a future in which the once devastated land becomes a land of pink cherry blossoms in full bloom.


On the day of the White Sky Fireworks, Tsai expressed:

"I'm grateful for the beautiful sea and sky of Shikura, and the unusual cooperation of June's unsettled winds and waves. Humanity is currently facing various challenges, including coexistence with COVID-19, economic decline, the reversal of globalization, and clashes between nations and cultures. I hope that the stories and bonds that the people of Iwaki have formed, transcending politics and history, will be conveyed to the cherry blossoms that fill the sky, bringing faith and hope to the world."

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SAINT LAURENT - WHEN THE SKY BLOOMS WITH SAKURA

https://youtu.be/I2uIi0GT8Qg


Horizon – White Chrysanthemum
After briefly explaining the background and concept of the artwork, Tsai will walk along the beach to the sea and personally ignite a 400-meter-long flashlight, triggering an explosion. The 1994 explosion project took place in the same location as this one. As the flames continued along the fast-fire line, 12 white chrysanthemum fireworks were ignited as a memorial to the victims of 2011.

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White Wave
A white wave measuring 80 metres suddenly rose up. Then, two successively rising white waves overlapped each other, forming a wall of white waves approximately 400 metres wide that rose and approached.

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Black Waves
The black waves grow larger and larger, rising up and moving furiously from left to right at breakneck speed, forming five walls of black waves reaching up into the sky.

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Memorial
A majestic white wave, 60m wide and 150m high, rises into a solemn monument amid the shrill sounds of its crest. Its crest, like a streaming star, bursts into a reverent eulogy, accompanied by a burst of white fireworks.

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A Sky Full of Cherry Blossoms
From left to right, bunches of cherry blossoms appear one after another in the sky. In 30 seconds, an endless mountain of cherry blossoms appears between sea and sky, stretching to a size of 400 meters wide and 120 meters high. The pink petals gracefully open, creating a dazzling spectacle. The mountain of cherry blossoms spreads endlessly into the air like a pink cloud blown by the wind.

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Cherry Blossom Scroll
Pink clouds scatter, green trees begin to bud, slowly growing from right to left, revealing a picturesque forest of pink cherry blossoms. As the pink flowers bloom, their petals scatter against the backdrop of the ocean, like brushstrokes of weeping cherry blossoms.

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■"Cai Guo-Qiang's Space Journey—Beginning with the Primordial Fireball" Exhibition Overview