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''Man in a cube'' is a contemporary sculpture created by
Eisenach präsentiert Lutherjahr-Skulptur von Ai Weiwei
in:
Article about “Man in a cube” on the Website of the Lutherhaus Eisenach
Ai Weiwei about “Man in a cube”
Installation of “Man in a cube” at the Lutherhaus Eisenach
''Man in a cube'' is a contemporary sculpture created by Chinese art
Chinese art is visual art that originated in or is practiced in China, Greater China or by Chinese artists. Art created by Chinese residing outside of China can also be considered a part of Chinese art when it is based on or draws on Chine ...
ist Ai Weiwei
Ai Weiwei ( ; , IPA: ; born 28 August 1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian, and activist. Ai grew up in the far northwest of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been ...
in 2017 for the exhibition ''Luther and the Avant-Garde'' marking the quincentenary of the Reformation
The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...
. It has been on permanent display in the courtyard of Lutherhaus Eisenach since October 2020.
Description
The sculpture consists of two concrete slabs (je 150 x 105 x 52 cm) aligned parallel to each other. The sides facing each other produce a cavity with the form of a seated man. The figure’s face bears the artist’s features.Background
With ''man in a cube'', Ai Weiwei is dealing with the oppressive experiences of his eighty-one day secret imprisonment by authorities in thePeople’s Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the second-most populous country after India, representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the e ...
. The artist himself described his work as “... a concrete block, which contains within it a single figure in solitude. That figure is the likeness of myself during my eighty-one days under secret detention in 2011. As an individual, once you have your idea and language, you can extend your existence through art.” Ideas and language are what sustained Ai Weiwei morally during his imprisonment. Ideas and language are what he finds intriguing about Martin Luther
Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...
too: “Martin Luther is an important figure in German history, especially with his contributions towards language. He’s very impressive to me. An individual’s free expression is so important to our human development. I wanted to take part in this exhibition to memorialize him.”
Original Display (2017)
The sculpture was created in 2017 for the exhibition ''Luther and the Avant-Garde'' inLutherstadt Wittenberg
Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German federal c ...
during the Reformation quincentenary festivities and was displayed together with other contemporary works of art at the Old Prison there from May 19 to November 1, 2017. The exhibition’s overarching theme was artistic treatment of Martin Luther’s ideas elaborated in his treatise On the Freedom of a Christian
''On the Freedom of a Christian'' (Latin: ''"De Libertate Christiana"''; German: ''"Von der Freiheit eines Christenmenschen"''), sometimes also called ''A Treatise on Christian Liberty'', was the third of Martin Luther’s major reforming treatis ...
.
Permanent Display (since 2020)
The ''Stiftung Lutherhaus Eisenach'' had endeavored since 2017 to make the sculpture and “exceptional manifestation of contemporary Reformation commemoration” permanently accessible to the public. Supported by numerous backers, the museum finally succeeded in acquiring the sculpture in 2019. ''Man in a cube'' was permanently installed in the courtyard of the Lutherhaus in August of 2020, the quincentenary of Luther’s ''On the Freedom of a Christian'', and presented to the public in a ceremony on October 9, 2020.in:
Die Zeit
(, ) is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles.
History
The first edition of was ...
online, October 2, 2020 (in German). Retrieved September 28, 2021.
External links
Article about “Man in a cube” on the Website of the Lutherhaus Eisenach
Ai Weiwei about “Man in a cube”
Installation of “Man in a cube” at the Lutherhaus Eisenach
References