Ai Weiwei Joins Banksy in Addressing the Plight of Refugees

Women and children among Syrian refugees striking at the platform of Budapest Keleti railway station. Ai Weiwei Joins Banksy in condemning the mistreatment of refugees. Refugee crisis. Budapest, Hungary, Central Europe, 4 September 2015, Ai Weiwei. Photo: Mstyslav Chernov.

ART NEWS: Ai Weiwei Joins Banksy in condemning the maltreatment of refugees in Europe. The artist will work with his team in his studio in Lesbos, Greece, to create an art project memorializing refugees.

BY KAZEEM ADELEKE

Image: Ai Weiwei artworks will bring attention to the plight of these Syrian children at Islahiye Refugee Camp in Turkey playing with USAID Assistant Administrator for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance Nancy Lindborg

USAID Assistant Administrator for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance Nancy Lindborg plays with Syrian children at Islahiye Refugee Camp in Turkey on January 24, 2013

LESBOS, GREECE – As more refugees pour into Europe, the call for the humane treatment of people seeking asylum from war and political persecution has grown.

Like many concerned people, artists have started lending their voices to the cruel treatment of refugees. First, it was Banksy who, with his mural of Apple founder Steve Jobs on a wall in the Calais migrant camp in northern France, drew attention to the sufferings of refugees. Jobs is wearing his trademark blue jeans, a black-polo neck sweater, and round glasses. He holds a black bin bag over one shoulder and an original Apple computer in the other hand.

Banksy’s painting of Apple founder Steve Jobs brings attention to the importance of migration to Western nations. The son of an immigrant from Syria, Jobs led a company that has become the most valuable company in the world. From the iPad to the iPhone, iPod, iWatch, and Apple computers, Apple has continued to change the world as we know it.

ART NEWS | READ ALSO: Banksy Highlights Steve Jobs Syrian Root in New Mural

As the calls for the humane treatment of people seeking asylum in Europe and other countries continue, another artist has joined in the effort to bring attention to the plight of refugees who are living in appalling conditions in refugee camps.

The Chinese artist, Ai Weiwei, has sent up a studio on the Greek island of Lesbos. The objective is to create artworks highlighting the plight of refugees that have been living in deplorable conditions for months. As an artist, Ai believes it is his responsibility to bring attention to this crisis. His new art project will highlight the situation of the suffering refugees.

The island of Lesbos is the main entry point into Europe for hundreds of thousands of refugees escaping from Syria and other places. Many of the desperate refugees traveled in rubber dinghies and inflated boats from nearby Turkey to Lesbos. More than 700 people have drowned in the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece in the effort to get to the promised land. The death of a child, whose image sent shock waves across the globe, has come to represent the human cost of the migrant flight.

About the Artist

An artist and activist, Ai Weiwei is well-known for his clash with the Chinese government. The artist uses his work to criticize Chinese authoritarianism and the oppression of its people. He was arrested many times for shedding light on an authoritarian and oppressive regime.

Since the refugee crisis began, anti-immigrants have been very vocal in their resistance to all people seeking asylum. Donald Trump has been vociferous in condemning the idea of allowing refugees and asylum seekers into the United States. According to him, refugees are not allowed in the United States. But Trump is not alone in calling for denying refugees and asylum seekers’ entry into the United States. He has been joined by other politicians who are unreserved in their disdain for immigrants and refugees.

More than 700 people have drowned in the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece in the effort to get to the promised land. The death of a child, whose image sent shock waves across the globe, has come to represent the human cost of the migrant flight.

In the last year, more than 1 million migrants and refugees have journeyed to Europe from Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. In the effort to flee violence, many of them have drowned. Those that have survived the perilous journey continue to live in squalor. In Lesbos, Greece, and Calais in France, the story is the same.

Non-governmental organizations from the Netherlands, Norway, and Spain have been very helpful. They are doing a lot to bring some comfort to the refugees on Lesbos who are stuck in purgatory. As the refugee crisis continues to grow, the need for assistance has also increased.

Ai’s renewed effort will add to the call for the humane treatment of refugees. Besides using the studios in Lesbos, Ai will also be using his studio in Germany and London. He will create projects that will memorialize those who have died in the search for safe land. The 58-year-old will be working with his students.