艾未未 - Ai Wei Wei

The picture blog I started yesterday was inspired by a short book of interviews with Ai Wei Wei, a Chinese contemporary artist and activist.

I first encountered Ai Wei Wei's work at an exhibition at Alcatraz. Below are a few pictures from my visit.













Housed in the crumbling Alcatraz prison, the exhibition emphasized how control over people against their will is fleeting. I appreciate his emphasis on individual rights.

I've almost finished the book of interviews and have bought a book version of a blog he created from 2006-2009 that was eventually shut down by the Communist party in China.

Quite quickly, I am becoming an Ai Wei Wei fanboy. Did you know he co-designed the birds nest for the Beijing Olympics?

Source: Wikipedia/Peter23