This link shows an installation Cai did in 2017 in Philadelphia. It was his biggest installation in the United States in the past decade before. The installation was entitled “Fireflys” and was 27 pedicabs decorated with colorful lanterns of all shapes made in Cai’s home province in China and brought over to the U.S. This work was commissioned to celebrate the centennial of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, and Cai was successful in drawing the public’s eye to this celebration by allowing them to ride in these pedicabs along the parkway.
I picked this piece to talk about for today’s blog post in order to show that Cai’s work goes above and beyond gunpowder. He also uses lights and colors to portray his messages. I think this installation is a good contrast to the mushroom cloud photographs that I had talked about previously. Giving Cai a light and celebratory side to his work, something that lifts people up as opposed to reminding them of past tragedies.
Your last sentence brought to my attention that I haven’t really been examining how the common people regarded political posters. I’ve been primarily examining the communist party members reactions, which is only a small portion of the population. I aim to gather some more resources now on what the proletariat thought of the posters.