The first time I came in contact with Ai Weiwei's work of art was 2009, when I stumbled into one of his exhibitions that was held in the famous Mori Tower in Tokyo by accident. During this time, I believe he was already famous mainly in the US and in Asia due to his long stay in the United States (about a decade in New York). However, I have never heard nor read about Ai Wewei in Europe before.
This changed when there was a documentary released in 2012, "Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry" and was shown in local art house cinemas throughout Germany. The reason for the surge in interest in the person of Weiwei, I believe, was that he was imprisoned by the Chinese government for almost 3 months due to his regime critical tone.
The Berlin exibition titled "Evidences" consists mainly of art created during the last 5 years. The only art that I remember having seen in Tokyo was the huge sculpture made out of numerous bikes, which was on display above the entrance door.
Another interesting artwork was the field of stools, consisting of many stools found in traditional chinese rural households.
Of particular interest to me was also the sculpture of the Diaoyu Islands, or Senkaku Islands, as they are known in Japanese. The territorial dispute between China and Japan about those uninhabited small islands received much media attention during the last couple of years and some argue that terretorial disputes among Asian nations (and there are a lot!) might give rise to a new pan-Asian war.
An interesting artwork was the display of many crabs. The meaning behind the crabs can be found in the usage of the Chinese word hexie (和谐, harmony), of which the Chinese word for lake crab (河蟹) is a homophone. As the Chinese government propagated the word hexie to describe the ideal contemporary Chinese society, indicating a layer of social conformity, the crabs should symbolify protest against it.
One of the exhibitions was a 1:1 replica of the cell where Weiwei was held in solitary confinement for 82 days during his imprisonment in 2011. Having lived in Tokyo on less than what Weiwei had in his cell, I would have imagined the room to be much smaller.
This changed when there was a documentary released in 2012, "Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry" and was shown in local art house cinemas throughout Germany. The reason for the surge in interest in the person of Weiwei, I believe, was that he was imprisoned by the Chinese government for almost 3 months due to his regime critical tone.
The Berlin exibition titled "Evidences" consists mainly of art created during the last 5 years. The only art that I remember having seen in Tokyo was the huge sculpture made out of numerous bikes, which was on display above the entrance door.
Another interesting artwork was the field of stools, consisting of many stools found in traditional chinese rural households.
Of particular interest to me was also the sculpture of the Diaoyu Islands, or Senkaku Islands, as they are known in Japanese. The territorial dispute between China and Japan about those uninhabited small islands received much media attention during the last couple of years and some argue that terretorial disputes among Asian nations (and there are a lot!) might give rise to a new pan-Asian war.
An interesting artwork was the display of many crabs. The meaning behind the crabs can be found in the usage of the Chinese word hexie (
One of the exhibitions was a 1:1 replica of the cell where Weiwei was held in solitary confinement for 82 days during his imprisonment in 2011. Having lived in Tokyo on less than what Weiwei had in his cell, I would have imagined the room to be much smaller.
Most of the rooms wallpaper was actually an artwork in itself, having used numerous debt certificates Weiwei issued to supporters during a time, when the Chinese government accused him of a tax fraud of approx. 1,7 Mio Euro.
All in all an exhibition worth visiting while it lasts. Looking forward to when I see Weiwei's art on display next.
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