AI WEIWEI IN BARCELONA

ai weiwei in barcelona was the only art show i saw during this trip. i admire ai weiwei’s relentless political work and fight.

on the table, the retrospective of this tireless militant is a series of chronologically-ordered unknown or iconic items. he uses any type of media in order to get his message across.

he collaborated with swiss architecture house herzog and de meuron for the design of the national stadium built for the olympics.

he was the mouthpiece of the people in order to bring to light the truths behind the disastrous sichuan earthquake that killed over 90,000 people back in 2008. he published on his blog the full list of the children dead because of the economically built schools, in spite of the officials trying to silence the heartbroken parents and to hide the entire story. the related documentary is hard to watch without crying.

in 2011, he was imprisoned for 81 days. that led to protests around the world demanding the release of the artist. he was released but also banned from leaving the country, as his passport was confiscated.

ai weiwei is a real life hero who openly defies the abusive authority of the chinese government.

he continues his one-man fight against the communist party, an inspiration for anybody who has ever thought that one person is not enough. it’s no surprise that his brave efforts polarize the support of people all around the world.