Taiwanese artist Charwei Tsai's exhibition, centered on the theme of pilgrimage, presents works created from her personal journey while reflecting the historical context of the construction of the Hotel des Chevaliers de Saint-Jean-de-Jérusalem.
A few years ago, she made pilgrimages to Mongolia and Japan, where the Tantric tradition spread in Asia from the 5th century. What fascinated her in each place she visited was the formation of mandalas. She kept in touch with local artisans and developed a body of collaborative work around glass mandala.
Her work is a large glass installation consisting of ten bijas written in Sanskrit, each character a sound that captures the vibration of the deity it represented. Kalachakra (Wheel of Time) is a textile work, made with natural materials from Mongolia. The visual dynamics of this mandala encourage reflection on the interdependence of our world, from a particle of dust to the entire universe.
This exhibition also brings to life one of Charwei Tsai's early explorations of the theme of pilgrimage to the light. Alba's Pilgrimage is a 2012 short film in which she films her friend Alba's experience walking to Santiago de Compostela.
Charwei Tsai (Taiwan) is in residency through the Art Explora x Cité internationale des arts program.