Cai Guo-Qiang. Transparent Monument

The visitor, emerging from The Metropolitan Museum of Art's historical labyrinth of world civilizations, arrives at the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden to breathe in the open sky, enjoy the natural scenery of Central Park and gaze at the heroic Manhattan skyline-all products of our present civilization. From this physical vantage point, history lies behind while the present lies ahead. This book attempts to situate the audience somewhere between history and contemporary culture, mythology and fact, nature and civilization, through the select configuration of four works that address the uneasiness and fragility of our society at present. Clear Sky Black Cloud is a recurring, time-based explosion piece; Transparent Monument, an iconic glass installation; Nontransparent Monument, a series of narrative stone reliefs; and Move Along, Nothing To See Here, a pair of life-sized crocodile sculptures pierced with sharp instruments confiscated at airport security checkpoints.
Together, the works create a temporal/spatial dynamic that integrates the museum roof garden's central location and the surrounding city without obstructing its spectacular vistas.