> Honest View from renowned Chinese Artist : Opening Ceremony ‘Visual
> Garbage’ Says Bird’s Nest Designer / Epoch Times
>
> Opening Ceremony ‘Visual Garbage’ Says Bird’s Nest Designer
>
> By Joan Delaney
>
> Epoch Times Staff Aug 10, 2008
>
>
http://en.epochtimes.com/n2/images/stories/large/2008/08/11/74593324_...
> Chinese artist and design consultant Ai Weiwei to the 'Bird's Nest'
> blasted Beijing's opening ceremonies in his blog. (Thomas Lohnes/Getty
> Images)
>
> Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who helped design the Bird’s Nest Olympic
> stadium, has strongly criticized the Games’ opening ceremony on his
> blog, calling it “a vaudeville” and “visual garbage that blasphemes the
> spirit of freedom.”
>
> He said the portrayal of traditional culture in the ceremony, which he
> didn’t attend, was “manipulated” and “fake."
>
> Addressing China’s communist regime, Ai wrote, “You can possess rights
> and control, and put on a grand ceremony…but it won't win the smallest
> respect, it won't win any reliable friendship.”
>
> He called the regime “a revolting expression on a fake smiling face”
> that will be remembered for humiliating China.
>
> Ai worked closely with the Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron as an
> artistic consultant for the design of the stadium but he has since
> become an outspoken blogger against the Olympics and the Chinese regime.
>
> This isn’t the first time Ai has criticized Beijing. In a recent open
> letter he called for drastic political reform in China and voiced
> concerns that Chinese authorities are using the Games to strengthen
> their control over the Chinese people.
>
> Ai is one of very few critics of the Chinese Communist Party who has not
> been censored by authorities. He is the son of a famous Chinese poet,
> which may be the reason, say China experts, he can get away with being
> so outspoken.
> Last Updated
>
> Aug 10, 2008
I'm glad to see that this man, who is pretty critical of the Chinese
government, can criticize like that without being arrested. He lives
in Beijing. Of course, it may help that he is the son of a famous
poet.
BTW, in addition to the criticism, he also has some positive things to
say about China, and acknowledges that the West's understanding of
China is not always accurate.
http://olympics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/chinas-olympic-crossroads-birds-nest.../
Q: What would you like to see the international community walk away
with from the Beijing Olympics?
Ai: No matter what reasons, separation and rejection shouldn’t be an
effective way of political interaction in today’s world. China needs
help from the rest of the world, and the world cannot exclude China’s
influence, nor deny new possibilities created by a developing China.
There are huge biases and naïve judgments in the world’s understanding
of China, which comes as a result of historical estrangement of
ideologies and politics. These biases impede today’s political and
economic development, and lead to losses on many fronts. The Olympic
Games are a chance for the world to deepen its understanding of China
— its culture and character — as well as the possibilities this
country holds in this new time under changing structures.
