Born in Tianshui, Gansu, in 1978, Cai Dongdong 蔡东东 joined the People’s Liberation Army at a young age, taking up a role as a portrait photographer for enlisted soldiers. This job became his formal training in the medium, developing into a career path as he returned to Beijing and opened his own studio. Through the use of archival, found photography, and installation, Cai creates half-fragmented realities. Taking readymade materials – a nod to Duchamp's Dadaist sensibilities – he pierces through the skin of these photographs with mirrors, arrows, and other objects, forming what he calls 'photo-sculptures.'
His work has been the subject of solo exhibitions worldwide, including Photography Autocracy, Klein Sun Gallery, New York, NY (2017); Fountain 泉, Klein Sun Gallery, New York, NY (2016); Off Target: Cai Dongdong, Charles Chu Reading Room, Connecticut College (2016); Image Uterus Production Power, Gallery 55, Shanghai, China (2013); Draftsmanship, Mattias Kuper Galleries, Stuttgart, Germany (2012); Tea Garden, UNIDEE Art Foundation, Biella, Italy (2011); and 51m2: 6# Cai Weidong, Taikang Space, Beijing, China (2010).
Cai currently lives and works in Beijing.
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