By Courtney Cameron

An art installation which aims to explore issues facing America such as gun violence and racial profiling has gone on display in Glasgow.

Tipped as one of the most ambitious art exhibitions to ever come to the city, Chicago-based artist Nick Cave's work has been admired by visitors to Tramway.

In his first European exhibition, the work is a kaleidoscope of colour, made up of 16,000 wind spinners, ten miles of crystals and millions of plastic pony beads.

Images such as guns and teardrops are encased within colourful wind spinners in a nod towards issues such as gun violence, racial profiling and gender politics.

At the heart of the exhibition is a huge sculptural centrepiece comprising of a cloud of chandeliers.

As visitors ascend the stairs, they discover a garden filled with objects the artist found in charity shops and garden sales over the years, and represents Cave's optimistic version of heaven.

Claire Jackson, senior curator at Tramway says the exhibition has attracted a new audience to the Tramway.

"It's really been one of our busiest exhibitions ever," she says.

"When you walk into the gallery you are immersed in these shimmering wind spinners, there are literally thousands of them in the space cascading down from the ceiling. It's almost as if Nick is trying to sculpt the air around us.

"As you move through the installation, it initially seduces but you'll see these stark images of teardrops, guns and targets.

"So while it's an incredibly opulent celebratory work initially, he's very much talking about issues around race and gun violence which are affecting his home in America right now.

"It really has a sense of radical optimism and hopefulness that I think we really need right now, given there are so many polarising issues in society and we are faced with history repeating itself at the moment."

The installation will be on display until November.