Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt

In the ground floor galleries there was a single installation devised by Ai Weiwei. This was the first time the artist had juxtaposed historic Chinese objects with his own artworks. The antiquities on display were acquired by Ai Weiwei at an auction in Cambridge in 2020. He identified some as original, including from the Northern Wei (386 – 534CE) dynasty, and others as counterfeits, later copies of original works.

Ai Weiwei’s own works, beautifully crafted in jade, marble and porcelain, explore contemporary issues, draw on his life story and transform familiar artefacts into iconic objects. The exhibition also included one of the artist’s most famous images, ‘Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn’, made here in LEGO bricks. On the second floor of Kettle’s Yard, you could watch three of the artist’s documentary films, Coronation (2020), Cockroach (2020) and Human Flow (2017). These remarkable films examine and illuminate the pandemic in Wuhan, China, the student protests in Hong Kong and the global migration crisis. Two Fairytale Chairs (2007) were placed in the Kettle’s Yard house for visitors to use. In the Research Space on the first floor were books and films about the artist to read and watch.