Cai Guo-Quiang

Artist: Cai Guo-Quiang
Works: Flying Saucer - 2010, Never Learned How to Land -2010, Cry Dragon/Cry Wolf: The Ark of Genghis Khan - 2008, Borrowing Your Enemy's Arrows - 2008, Dragon Boat - 1999

Cai Guo-Quiang is a contemporary Chinese artist. Born in 1957, he has been a well-known artist in China for many years, and recently become known globally as the Director of Visual and Special Effects for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
I find his work to be very visually striking, and his sculptures carry a lot of weight. I personally love the variety of the materials he uses; he uses anything from animal skins, to lanterns, to bows and arrows. The materials not only speak volumes about his creativity as an artist, but they give the works heft that they would not have if they were made from anything else. Cai Guo-Quiang finds the artistry in the materials and utilizes them to great effect; my personal favorite is use of lanterns Dragon Boat.