Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Artist of the day, December 11: Ai Weiwei, a Chinese contemporary artist and activist (#861)

Ai Weiwei (1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist and activist.  Ai collaborated with architects Herzog & de Meuron as a consultant on the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Summer Olympics. As an activist, he has been openly critical of the Chinese Government's stance on democracy and human rights. He investigated government corruption and cover-ups, in particular, the Sichuan schools corruption scandal following the collapse of "tofu-dreg schools" in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. In 2011, following his arrest at Beijing Capital International Airport, he was held for 81 days without charge; officials alluded to allegations of "economic crimes".

Since being allowed to leave China in 2015, he has lived in Berlin, Germany, with his family, working and traveling internationally.

Ai's impact on the West is arguably greater than it is in China, where he remains a controversial figure. In the U.S. and Europe, he is almost universally revered, both as an artist and political activist, and has led the way to a more nuanced awareness of Chinese contemporary culture in the international community.

He is an inspirational figure for many people both in the West and in China, and both in and outside the art world. Ai's struggle for freedom of speech and expression sheds light on specific issues that are important in their own right. More broadly, it reminds us of the power of visual art to move us as individuals, and sometimes entire nations, to action. Ai's work underscores the idea that art may have the power, and even the responsibility, to change society.

Members of the general public and the wider art community continue to support him. His often enigmatic messages on Instagram and Twitter have moved his "followers" to participate in the creative process by responding in an array of on-line expressions of artistic and political solidarity that are in turn indebted to his approach to art as a social practice. In October 2015, for example, when Lego refused Ai a large shipment of blocks (on the grounds that it doesn't endorse political art), hundreds of Ai's followers sent their own Legos to the artist, via mail and official collection points. The entire event was organized through social media.

Numerous artists working across a range of media, in China and beyond, have been moved by Ai's expressive conceptualism and fearless activism. These include artist Huang Rui, whose works include provocative performances based on China's relationship with the West. Xu Qu's political conceptual installations are directly inspired by Ai's. As a high-profile, controversial figure (as well as a stark example of how dangerous political activism can be) it is also entirely possible that Ai's activism has put a negative spin on political art for a growing group of young Chinese artists who have retreated from contemporary politics, claiming that they know a different (better) China from that experienced by Ai and that political art belongs to an older generation.

© 2019. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Ai Weiwei. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only



Mr. Ai Weiwei

1993-2000, Still Life
1995, Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn
1997-2006, Table with two legs on the wall
2002, Chandelier
2003, Forever Bicycles
2005, Fragments
2005-08, ‘The Bird’s Nest’, National Stadium, Beijing
2006,  Marble Doors
2006, Colored Vases
2007,  Through
2007, Fountain of Light
2007, Grapes
2007, Template

2008,  Moon Chests
2008, Bubble of Ten
2010, Circle of Animals, Zodiac Heads (Gold)
2010, Divina Proportione
2010, Sunflower Seeds
2010, Trees
2010, Trees
2010, Untitled
2010, Zodiac Head: Dragon
2011, Coca Cola Vase
2011-13,  S.A.C.R.E.D.
2013,  Bang
2013,  Han Dynasty Vases in Auto Paint
2013, Forever Bicycles
2013, Stools
2013, Stools
2013, Ye Haiyan’s Belongings
2014,  Pusher
2014, Divina Proportio-Continua
2014, Shelter
2015,  Bicycle Chandelier
2015, Lu
2015, Surveillance Camera with Marble Stand
2015, Tiger, Tiger, Tiger
2015-16, 4,992 Photos Relating to Refugees
2017,  Law of the Journey
2017,  Law of the Journey
2017,  Porcelain Vase (Demonstrations)
2017,  Vases with Refugee Motif as a Pillar
2017, Crystal Ball (detail)
2017, Life Cycle installation at the Marciano Art Foundation

2017, Life Cycle installation at the Marciano Art Foundation
2017, Life Cycle installation at the Marciano Art Foundation
2018,  Iron Root
2019, Level

No comments:

Post a Comment