{"id":3451,"date":"2014-09-26T20:58:09","date_gmt":"2014-09-26T20:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/?p=3451"},"modified":"2014-09-26T20:58:09","modified_gmt":"2014-09-26T20:58:09","slug":"ai-weiweis-songs-of-freedom-on-alcatraz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/ai-weiweis-songs-of-freedom-on-alcatraz","title":{"rendered":"Ai Weiwei\u2019s Songs of Freedom on Alcatraz"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Whitney Phaneuf on September 25, 2014<\/p>\n

\"Trace3\"<\/a>
\nA view of Ai Weiwei\u2019s large \u201cTrace\u201d (2014) on Alcatraz (all photos by the author for Hyperallergic unless otherwise noted)<\/p>\n

SAN FRANCISCO \u2014 It\u2019s a surprisingly clear morning as we exit the ferry to Alcatraz, but the former federal prison still looms like eerie, ancient ruins. A large crowd gathers to hear a tour guide introduce this place that held men captive for thirty years. \u201cThe torture was really seeing the boats go by,\u201d the guide says as seagulls caw above our heads, another thing that likely tormented prisoners.<\/p>\n

Birds reappear as we enter the press preview of @Large: AiWeiwei on Alcatraz (pronounced \u201cAt Large\u201d), an exhibition of seven new installations in which freedom is a central theme. The birds are actually paper kites, suspended mid-flight and bathed in surreal colors. They\u2019re paired with a large dragon kite that winds through the rusted ceiling pipes of the long industrial room that was once used for prison labor.<\/p>\n

\"Alcatraz\"<\/a>
\nA view of Alcatraz from the ferry<\/p>\n

Ai has left code messages and quotes on select pieces of the dragon\u2019s individual, handcut circles, which form its body. Some may require googling (\u201cZe Du Out. Disgusting Dictator. \u2014 Nito Alves\u201d), while others are obvious (\u201cEvery one of us is a potential convict. \u2014 Ai Weiwei\u201d). The brightly colored \u201cWith Wind\u201d is a stark contrast to the bleak concrete and glass building, and they ease us into a show that gradually embraces its environment as it progresses. Of course, Ai has never stepped foot on this island \u2014 he\u2019s still not allowed to leave China \u2014 but he seems to understand it, from his own 81-day jail sentence and from the videos, images, and history books shared by curator Cheryl Haines, who carried out his vision.
\nFor detail please visit here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Whitney Phaneuf on September 25, 2014 … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[232],"tags":[57],"views":3989,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3451"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3451"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3451\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3454,"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3451\/revisions\/3454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}