Ai WeiWei - Never Sorry

I rather shamefully knew little about Ai Wei Wei’s story, his art and passion. I say shamefully for reasons that so many people should. I can recognize myself…I don't know nearly enough about the significant occurrences in the world. I too often take every day comforts for granted. I was in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics with my family, this being a prominent time in Wei Wei’s documentary, primarily due to his involvement in the Birds nest design, one…. if not the most incredibly crafted piece of architecture I have ever witnessed. This was also a time after few raw months after Sichaun’s deadly Earthquake on May 12.

Personally I believe Wei Wei's most inspiring piece is his list of school children names of whom died in the Sichaun earthquake. Each name was concisely written on the wall of his office. I can understand why some would object this piece as art. Yet, I would object. As a contemporary of his states in an interview taken in the documentary Wei Wei is visual, his ideas are conceptual but he is creating something never done before. Each of his pieces I really had to examine to understand.

Directory Alison Klayman, did an exceptional job capturing Wei Wei’s personality, throughout the documentary. He seems a fearless character. Fearlessness’ is I believe quite a luxurious trait but there are some instances where I think Wei Wei could benefit from caution. He was after all attaked and held captive by the Chinese authorities, subjected to discression…a man so UN afraid to speak his opinion.

I believe some of the most prominent interviews in Wei Wei’s documentary are the conversations held with him and his mother. It is clear she is proud yet anxious of his status. Gao Ying : ‘I wish he was purely an artist…one person cannot solve all the countries problems’.

From all of this I mostly want to capture that courage Wei Wei has and incredible modesty ‘I don’t want people to worship me’. This is a man we should regard as a great ad true artist of the 21^st Century.