From a Dust Particle to the Universe, 2021
Installation with cinnabar natural pigments & ink
700 x 600cm
National Taichung Theatre’s Art Corner
Commissioned by Live Forever Foundation, Taichung, Taiwan
From a Dust Particle to the Universe, Tsai’s largest drawing to date, is a site-specific production for the National Taichung Theatre’s Art Corner. Over a five month period of durational performance, the artist paints a large circle form with cinnabar, a red pigment that is extracted from minerals that are traditionally used medicinally for calming the spirit.
Starting from the center of the circle in a spiral direction, Tsai writes the Samantabhadra Aspiration Prayers 普賢行願品 from the well-known Flower Ornament Sutra 華嚴經 like flower petals large and small covering the entire surface. The characters of ten particular aspirational phrases are burnt with thin incense sticks, allowing light to pierce through each character. The large drawing is then hung on the window panels of the opera house. This work is dedicated to all the lives lost during the pandemic years.
