DHARAMSHALA, September 30: Renowned Chinese artist Ai Weiwei’s new installation, which was unveiled on September 27 in Alcatraz, formerly a Spanish fortress in 1700s and US military prison in 1800s, in California, will include a jailed Tibetan singer among 176 portraits of former and current prisoners around the world.
The installation, dubbed Trace, is part of a seven-month exhibition called “@Large: Ai Weiwei on Alcatraz” is made out of 1.2 million Lego bricks. It is an exhibit of sculpture, sound and mixed-media works focusing on human rights, freedom of expression and incarceration.
The portraits also include NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden and the late South African leader Nelson Mandela. It also feature less prominent people in global struggles for freedom — people Ai says have been “forgotten by society.”
The artist himself falls into the same category of freedom fighters, having been previously incarcerated for 81 days in 2011 and currently unable to leave China after having his passport confiscated, but he chose not to include himself in the project.
The exhibition is being organized by For-Site, a San Francisco–based group that produces public art, and has been conceptualized and coordinated by Ai remotely.
“If one person walks away from this exhibition thinking differently about their individual responsibility in the world, or understanding the concept of freedom in a better way, this project will have been a great success,” says Cheryl Haines, FOR-SITE founder and curator of “@Large.”
Haines traveled to Beijing to organize the exhibit with Ai. Coordination included the most granular details, including the placement of each of the1.2 million Lego bricks that form “Trace,” one of several pieces staged in parts of the former federal prison that are usually strictly off-limits.
A bright starburst of Legos forms the image of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama who was detained by the Chinese government at age 6 in 1995, just days after being recognized by the Dalai Lama.
