This fall, AI Wewei will realize new works in Ukraine about the ongoing war between the country and Russia.
Title Three perfect proportions of spheres and camouflage uniform painted whitethis work will be launched on 13 Soviet-era exhibition spaces in Kiev from September 14 to November 30. Location-specific work is commissioned by Ribbon International, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting contemporary and historical Ukrainian art and culture.
“In this age, being invited to hold an exhibition in Kiev, the capital of a country in war, I hope to express certain thoughts and thoughts through my work,” AI said in a statement. “My artwork is not only an aesthetic expression, but also a reflection of my position as an individual in a huge political transition, international hegemony and conflict. This exhibition provides a platform to express these concerns. At its core, this exhibition is a dialogue about war and peace, rationality and irrationality.”
According to the press release, the work will be similar to the sphere-like Icosahedron sculpture of his “Divina Pertibale” series (2004-12), which was inspired by mathematical illustrations by Leonardo da Vinci. The 2006 version is made from the highly sought-after yellow tree and now belongs to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, another version is auctioned in 2022.
For the Kiev speech, AI will showcase three of the works that will be made of metal and wrapped in a modified camouflage fabric that will include animal patterns. The fabric will then be “coated with a thin white paint (second layer of camouflage).
“Of course, there’s still something underneath whenever you cover something,” the AI’s statement continued. “So I give extra meaning to how we deal with reality and the level of reality we are dealing with. It’s reality, what are we seeing or what we know?”
AI is currently the theme of the Seattle Museum of Art’s retrospective “AI, Rebel: Art and Activity of AI Weewei”. In the comments American ArtCritic Louis Bury wrote that the exhibition “brings a mirror to the recent paradigm of liberal political art, unconsciously suggesting that their symbolism is somewhat compensatory, providing an aesthetic channel for the feeling of powerlessness.”
