Once a year there is a massive art installation in Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall, London. This year it is Ai Weiwei’s Sunflower Seeds (check this link for more details http://bit.ly/aApgzd). Millions and millions of hand-made replicas of sunflower seeds cover the floor. The installation seems to invite the viewer to reconsider his/her perception of the label “Made in China”. I went to see this exhibition again last Sunday. But unlike all the other times, I stayed longer, watched the documentary again with greater attention and was mesmerized by this massive carpet of porcelain as if I was seeing it for the very first time. The next day, I read on the first page of the Financial Times that Ai Weiwei, China’s most famous modern artist known for his open criticism of the Communist party, had been arrested by Chinese authorities as a continuous move to repress freedom of speech. Ai Weiwei has disappeared ever since and fear grows for his safety. Reading that upset me. I can’t believe the stupidity of these authorities. On a pure political strategic level, surely this is the most stupid move the Communist party could have possibly considered. It hasn’t gained international sympathy.
This drawing is my own, modest, way to advocate freedom of speech and to join the international call for the release of Ai Weiwei…
Caroline Janssens Illustration 