The Chinese artist invites us to a celebration bringing together the institutions that have contributed so much to the identity of the Palais de Rumine since the beginning: the museums of archaeology, natural history and geology.
Ai Weiwei was born in Beijing in 1957. After living in the United States for ten years, in 1993 he began expanding his artistic horizons and took up the cause of his fellow Chinese artists. Imprisoned in China for his political outspokenness – notably regarding official concealment of the humanitarian disaster that followed the 2008 Sichuan earthquake – he was released in response to worldwide protests, and now lives in Berlin. In his sculpture he renews and subverts Chinese craft traditions while at the same time parodying Pop Art and American Minimalism. With photography and film he records urban change and populations shifts. Prolific and dedicated, this remarkable artist and virtuoso user of the social networks practises a skilful mix of art, private life and civic commitment.