Ai Weiwei the Chinese activist and dissident artist has joined forces with the Hong Kong-based toy designer Eric So to produce a series of oversized rubber sculptures for the Singapore Museum of Art and Design’s stand at Art Stage Singapore. The work is titled “Aibodao” which translates to “Unloveable” in Chinese and references Mr Ai’s nude portrait which caused controversy and led the Chinese Government to label it pornography and ban it from the internet. The latest sculpture installation features four nude self-portraits formed in black, brown and red coloured rubber. A gallery assistant was overheard commenting; “They sort of resemble Space-hoppers”.
Eric So was born in Hong Kong 1968, where he based. He is a multi – media artist and Creative Director of Papamamason. After graduating from design school, Eric joined an advertising agency and was made Creative Director. Ten years later Eric headed down a new road in creative freelancing that marked the beginning of his work in freestyle illustration and design. In 1996, his first exhibition named “Sex, Sex, Sex and More Sex” was held at Hong Kong Art Centre.
Ai Weiwei was born in 1957 in Beijing, China, where he lives and works. He is one of the most widely known and outspoken Chinese artists working today. Known for his social or performance-based interventions as well as object-based artworks, he employs metaphorical references, humour and political irony in his work. He is best known for his collaboration on the ‘Birds Nest Stadium’ for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. He has currently returned to work on the design of the 2012 Serpentine Pavilion with Herzog & de Meuron the original team which produced the ‘Birds Nest’.