As we exited the Art Institute following a member morning at the now-concluded “Van Gogh’s Bedrooms” (my images here), Tai Xiangzhou’s “Celestial Chaos No. 1” commanded my attention. It reminded me of Anselm Kiefer’s “Midgard,” which we had seen at the Milwaukee Art Museum over winter break.
Read more about “Midgard” here.
Rooted as they are in their respective mythologies (Chinese and Norse), don’t the paintings each evoke a sense of cosmic mystery? I was reminded of their similarity when reading the recent Member Magazine, which features a short article about the Art Institute’s acquisition of “Celestial Chaos No. 1” (no link available). The painting will be exhibited in Gallery 130 through the end of August.
Nerdishly 
I just stood in front of Celestial Chaos this weekend. I’d never noticed it before, although I’ve been to the Art Institute at least a dozen times in my life.
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The piece was recently acquired by the museum, and I believe it’s already off exhibit. We were fortunate to see it.
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