Ai Weiwei inaugurates sculpture in L’Aquila

The Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has inaugurated a site-specific steel sculpture titled ‘Figure and wheelbarrow for L’Aquila’ in front of the Palazzo dell’Emiciclo in L’Aquila, Italy. Curated by Giacinto Di Pietrantonio, the artwork measures approximately three meters in height and 3.40 meters in length.

The sculpture depicts the artist with a construction wheelbarrow, a symbol chosen to represent the city’s themes of labor, reconstruction, and rebirth. The concept draws connections to the artist’s childhood and his father, the poet Ai Qing, as well as the historical ‘people of the wheelbarrows’ who protested reconstruction delays in L’Aquila in 2010.

Ai Weiwei noted the parallels between the 2008 Sichuan earthquake and the 2009 earthquake in L’Aquila. The project is part of the preparations for L’Aquila’s designation as the Italian Capital of Culture in 2026 and is supported by various regional institutions, including the Abruzzo Regional Council, the Municipality of L’Aquila, and Fondazione Carispaq.