(Rome) A sculpture by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei was destroyed by a repeat Czech national during the opening of an exhibition in Bologna, Italy, the museum told AFP on Monday.
The sculpture named Porcelain Cubeblue and white in colour, was presented as part of the exhibition “Who am I” at the Palazzo Fava museum in Bologna.
A man crept up behind the artwork and threw it to the ground, breaking it into many pieces on Friday. Ai Weiwei posted a photo of the vandalized artwork on his Instagram account.
“It is with regret that I must comment on the act of vandalism that has struck the work of Ai Weiwei, a great artist and a dear friend,” Arturo Galansino, curator of the exhibition, commented in a message to AFP.
PHOTO TOBIAS SCHWARZ, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Ai Weiwei
Ai Weiwei “was concerned about whether anyone had been hurt, and asked to take away the remains of his work,” Galansino added.
“Unfortunately, I know the author of this inconsiderate gesture because of a series of similar episodes that have occurred “over the years at various exhibitions and in various institutions in Florence,” in central Italy, Galansino said.
The police arrested the perpetrator, Vaclav Pisvejc, a 57-year-old Czech citizen who describes himself as a protest artist and is not new to the art.
In September 2018 he attacked the artist Marina Abramovic, hitting her with a painting that was supposed to represent her, breaking the painting on her head.