Female power

In 2015, Cai had her second child, a son. Taking care of two children actually made her feel more depressed and pressured than her first child.

Every day she would ask herself: "Where am I? Who can hear my voice? Where is my future?" At night, she would encourage her reflection in the mirror to believe in herself, urging it to "not stop pursuing your dreams".

From Cai's own experience, when a woman goes back to work after childbirth, the requirement of society is higher. They cannot win. At home, their families expect them to be devoted mothers as if they have no job, while in the workplace, mothers are supposed to work like they do not have children.

"Maybe many people take it for granted, but I think it is not right, and I want to express my feelings," Cai says.

She created a series of beaded curtains emblazoned with words and phrases frequently uttered by her female friends, such as "leave me alone" and "no".

"Beaded curtains feel similar to a fast-paced society in which everyone gets used to controlling their emotions. These feelings hide deep inside, and once touched, they will suddenly burst forth," the artist explains.

Cai hopes that she can express the pressure and confusion faced by most people, especially women, through her installations.

This year, her installation Red Sea was built in cooperation with dozens of other women, who are factory workers, using more than 100,000 crystal beads to create a giant tidal wave.

During the process, she talked with these women and found out that, although each of them has encountered various difficulties, they always keep smiling and try hard to make a better life. "It's like an invisible wave under the water. But the tide will finally come," according to Cai.

Giving up being a "good enough "mother herself, Cai knows that there is no work-life balance. Last year, after her son started kindergarten, she went back to her alma mater to continue her studies and earn a doctorate.

"I do not know what a mother I will become, but as a female artist, I know what I want to do－I want to record women's voices, let them be heard and inspire even more of them," Cai says.

When Cai's daughter says that she wants to become an artist like her, Cai knows that her efforts are working.