Ai Weiwei to open Berlin studio
- Source: Global Times
- [08:54 March 31 2011]
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Ai Weiwei poses among his sculptures during an exhibition in Munich, Germany, in October 2009. Photo: IC
By Huang Shaojie
Beijing-based artist Ai Weiwei told the Global Times Wednesday he will open his first overseas studio in Berlin to better facilitate his exhibitions in western countries.
The 53-year-old artist, who has earned a reputation for being an outspoken critic of social and political affairs, is already having his schedule filled with world tours, yet he has never had a chance to hold any large exhibitions in China.
"I need a work base in Europe, since most of my exhibitions happen there and in America," Ai told the Global Times.
Ai's works are involved in more than 10 world tours this year, he said.
By contrast, Ai has had few exhibitions in his home country.
He canceled what otherwise would have been his first solo show in the Chinese mainland on Feburary 14, after the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (UCCA) in the 798 art district, Chaoyang district, asked to postpone it until October.
Ai expects to soon sign a lease for the premises of an old brewery in Berlin.
A locally recruited team of two people is now in Berlin to oversee the design and execution of the renovations, which could take one or two years, according to Ai.
The Berlin studio will be larger than his current headquarters in Caochangdi, Chaoyang district, and will serve multiple purposes, including holding exhibitions, he said.
But the artist hopes to spend more time working in his Beijing studio than in Europe, he said.
"This is still my country, and I will continue to work in Caochangdi, if they don't tear down my workshop there, that is," he added.
Ai reportedly told Deutsche Presse Agentur Tuesday that "Berlin has a very good atmosphere. Many artists live there and prices are affordable, too," according to a blog post on arts website artspy.cn.
"The way to fame in the West for Chinese artists: forget art, talk politics," reads the artspy report headline, but Ai disagreed.
"That's a na ve opinion," Ai said. "If talking politics gets an artist famous, they would all have done it, given how badly everybody wants to be famous.
"Politics is a precondition for life, not a shot at fame. To say that is to not understand either politics or art or the West," he told the Global Times.
