Since its reporting in the last 48 hours, the case of Chinese artist, architect, and activist Ai Wei Wei has prompted demands from the international art and design community for his release, as well as public statements on his behalf by the United States, the United Kingdom, and most recently by the European Union. News that he has been detained and disappeared as of April 3, 2011 has broken across the international media. As reported early on by Andrew Jacobs in the New York Times, and more recently by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, his detention and forced closure of his Beijing studio coincides with what is known as the "Jasmine Revolution," a protest movement in the People´s Republic of China that was inspired by the 2011 Tunisian Revolution and has prompted the Communist Party´s six-week crackdown on human rights lawyers and activists, with many of those detained still not released, and others, such as pro-democracy writer Liu Xianbin, sentenced to 10 years in jail for subversion.
Aaron Levy, Executive Director of the Slought Foundation, Philadelphia, and Melissa Lam, an independent curator in Hong Kong, have reported in:
"While his arrest is not unexpected, and indeed was anticipated by Ai Wei Wei and others in his community, it is a devastating and saddening blow that follows upon the forced demolition of his Shanghai studio in January of this year, his recent house arrest in the wake of a dinner gathering he organized at his condemned studio, and his beating by Chinese police in August 2009, with emergency brain surgery required.
"Ai Wei Wei, the son of revered Chinese poet Ai Qing (regarded as one of the finest modern Chinese poets and himself imprisoned by the Chinese Communist Party), is internationally recognized for his cultural and architectural practice as well as his tireless activism on behalf of social justice and political reform in China.
"His many projects include the Bird´s Nest (2008), a landmark design for the Beijing Olympic National Stadium (together with Herzog and De Meuron); Fairytale (2007), in which he sent 1001 Chinese citizens to Kassel, Germany as a cross-cultural exchange; and the Sichuan Earthquake Names Project, which sought to uncover the names of the thousands of schoolchildren who died in the Sichuan earthquake of May 2008, many as a result of poor maintenance of school buildings.
"His 2010 "Sunflower Seeds" exhibition, currently on display at Tate Modern, features 100 million porcelain seeds made in the Chinese city of Jingdezhen and forms a seemingly infinite landscape in the museum´s Turbine Hall. As a commentary on the relationship between the individual and the masses, the project explores the geo-politics of cultural and economic exchange and, as curator Juliet Bingham has remarked, invites us to consider such questions as "What does it mean to be an individual in today´s society?"
"We urge the Chinese government to respect Ai Wei Wei´s health and to insure his safety, and to release him immediately. His detainment and disappearance is a great tragedy and devastating blow to the international community. Ai Wei Wei is an artist that feels a great love and compassion for China and her people, and we urge the Chinese government to recognize this fact and allow him and his family the freedom if not to speak freely, then to at least leave.
"We strongly encourage you to raise your voice and to contact your elected representatives, government contacts, and civic institutions, to advocate for official statements and positions on his behalf as well as all of those that have been detained these last weeks in response to the Jasmine Revolution."
Of course this case is drawing much-needed attention in part due to Ai Wei Wei´s broad interest and support among international institutions and the press. Ai Wei Wei has suddenly joined the increasing number of Chinese citizens who dissent and disappear. His principles remind us to be cognizant of and vocal for all the dissidents who are suddenly silenced.
UPDATES:
There are many new insights and updates at the Slought Foundation page.
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The US State Department has issued a statement for the release of Ai Wei Wei.
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Ai Wei Wei´s documentarian on why the arrest marks an alarming escalation.
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