The \u201cState of Emergency\u201d art exhibit in the Belk Visual Arts Center on the campus of Davidson College almost seems ironic at first glance. An exhibit that shows off artists and their interpretations of crisis is actually remarkably clean, modern and spacious. When I think of disaster and crisis my mind doesn\u2019t picture sleek, white walls and a spacious gallery, however, this is what I saw at the \u201cState of Emergency\u201d exhibit. To me, this unique and somewhat mislead structure, describes the meaning of the entire exhibit as a whole. To me it represents how these works of art are providing different ways at looking at disaster and crisis just as the exhibit structure provides you with a different visual viewpoint. Furthermore, because of this unique design, I found myself leaving the area with most of the art pieces and focusing on the room across the hall. At first, I couldn\u2019t tell if it was a piece of art or a building structure or what; it was massive. As I began to lean in I realized it was a wall with names all over it. But it wasn\u2019t just a wall; this wall represented the massive size of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.<\/p>\n
This work was called \u201cNamelist and Remembrance,\u201d by Ai Weiwei which commemorates the school children lost in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. According to the exhibit curator, \u201cNamelist\u201d will cover the gallery walls with the names of 5,196 schoolchildren who perished in the earthquake because of shoddily constructed schools. The names of the deceased will be read aloud in the audio work, \u201cRemembrance.\u201d\u00a0 As background, Ai Weiwei is a Chinese contemporary artist, active in sculpture, installation, architecture, and social, political and cultural criticism. As a political activist, he has been openly critical of the Chinese Government’s stance on human rights and has even investigated government corruption, in particular the Sichuan schools corruption scandal following the collapse of so-called “tofu-dreg schools” in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.<\/p>\n
Subsequently, Weiwei\u2019s work, \u201cNamelist and Remembrance,\u201d is a continuation and political expression of his investigation into the scandal following the earthquake. The 2008 Sichuan earthquake, according to official figures, stated that 69,197 were confirmed dead, including 68,636 in Sichuan province, and 374,176 injured, with 18,222 listed as missing. Besides the sheer size of the artwork by Weiwei and its evident resemblance to the size of the earthquake, I believe his work is making a much bigger political argument than just commemorating the lives lost. I think this piece offers a unique window into the terrors of the earthquake, and in Weiwei\u2019s attempt, probably the terrors of the Chinese government. This piece details all of Weiwei\u2019s work in the past on the corruption of the Chinese government but shows us intimate details about that event like no other kind of historical evidence can. As this piece is a reaction to disaster and crisis, it is fitting that in Ai Weiwei\u2019s past he led a team to survey the post-quake conditions in various disaster zones. I think this artwork can shine some light about the time and place where this crisis occurred and maybe more importantly, something about the human values of this civilization. With the background of Weiwei and the source information from the Sichuan earthquake, I believe his argument is a response to the government’s lack of transparency. By creating this sculpture with all the student\u2019s names on it, I think he is doing what the government didn\u2019t do in revealing names of students who perished in the earthquake due to substandard school campus constructions. A political statement against the Chinese government takes on the simplest of forms, as the artwork is just a list of names; an extremely powerful message.<\/p>\n
Weiwei\u2019s piece highlights and certainly speaks true to the message given by exhibit curator Lia Newman when she claimed, \u201cThe goal of the exhibition is not simply to present images of horror or \u2018disaster pornography\u2019 but rather to open a dialogue about the role artists can play in bringing attention to disasters while working toward recovery.\u201d By not only commemorating those who had passed and taking political action through art, Weiwei is an excellent example of artists using their role in society to shine light on disaster relief and crisis situations at all ends of the earth.<\/p>\n
Source: (Ai, Weiwei (2011). Ai Weiwei’s Blog: Writings, Interviews, and Digital Rants 2006-2009.<\/i> Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. p. 209.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The \u201cState of Emergency\u201d art exhibit in the Belk Visual Arts Center on the campus of Davidson College almost seems ironic at first glance. An exhibit that shows off artists and their interpretations of crisis is actually remarkably clean, modern and spacious. When I think of disaster and crisis my mind doesn\u2019t picture sleek, white … <\/p>\n