Ai Weiwei. Ways Beyond Art

The catalogue Ways Beyond Art was published with Ai Weiwei for his first exhibition in Spain, held at Ivorypress in 2009. This exhibition displays all the areas in which he has worked, from drawings and emblematic series of photographs to the entries of his personal blog in China. Ai Weiwei is one of the most influential artists in China. His work has always maintained a personal approach, shunning fashions and trends. Although he confesses that his real, unfulfilled vocation is to be a poet, the way in which he articulates spaces, the radical nature of his installations, and the pure force of his provocative arguments create poetry in his work. Ai Weiwei has been a reference point for contemporary Chinese artists in recent decades. His generosity to young artists includes sponsorship and unconditional support. He completely rejects anything he considers mediocre or lacking in substance, due to his commitment and loyalty to artistic expression in its purest form, free of restrictions.
Texts by Uli Sigg and Hans Ulrich Obrist. Edited by Elena Ochoa Foster and Hans Ulrich Obrist.