Ai Weiwei: According to What?

Happy Tuesday all! In a previous post, I mentioned that I saw an exhibit at the Indianapolis Museum of Art by an artist named Ai Weiwei. The exhibit was incredibly inspiring, and convinced me that Ai Weiwei is a total bad ass.

Ai Weiwei is a Chinese artist from Beijing. He was born there and moved to the United States for a period of time, but moved back in 1993. Weiwei's work focuses on human rights and social change, which caused him trouble with the Chinese government, starting in 2009. Three years prior, Weiwei began blogging, commenting on the politics of China. After he began a project to collect names of over 5,000 children who were killed in the May 2008 Sichuan earthquake, the government took notice.

His politically charged work and blog angered the government, prompting them to shut the blog down in 2009. Soon after, Weiwei was beaten by police, and later put on house arrest. In early 2011, his studio was destroyed by authorities, and he was secretly detained in April of that year. The government said he was detained for tax issues, but Weiwei denies that as the reason. He was kept for three months, and released, then released a documentary called Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry about his art and social activism, clearly showing that this run-in with the government would not change his art or ways of thinking.

Since his release, Weiwei has been carefully watched by the government, which is reflected in his work through a marble surveillance camera sculpture featured in the exhibit at the IMA, Ai Weiwei: According to What? His "fuck you" attitude is also reflected in his work through a series of photographs of him flicking off national monuments, as well as a series of photos where he smashes a Han Dynasty urn.

Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn

He blatantly showcases his interactions with the government in the exhibit through a photo he took right after he was taken by the government,

Picture he took after he was arrested

as well as an enlarged photo of a scan of his swollen brain after being beaten.

He has gotten so much crap from the Chinese government for his work, he has been physically beaten, and has been detained for 81 days, yet he still produces work that speaks to what he believes in. Ai Wewei is a total bad ass. There is no other way to put it. He sticks to his guns and produces controversial work, no matter the consequence, because it provides commentary on issues he thinks are important. As an artist of any sort, that is the main thing one strives for. Seeing him achieve his goal, despite physical consequences, is inspiring beyond belief. I could honestly talk about the exhibit for many more paragraphs, but I don't want to make this post too long. Instead, check out this really great video John Green made about the exhibit.

If you live near Indianapolis, please, please go see the exhibit! It will be at the IMA until July 21st, and costs $12, but it is so worth the money.

Have a great week, and thanks for reading :)