Ai Weiwei

Created by multidisciplinary artist and activist, Ai Weiwei, Gilded Cage transforms the fence into an abstract, golden cage-like structure. Using the fence as a metaphor, the artwork references structures of power and division to provoke discussion on issues relating to borders and immigration. 

Located at Doris C. Freedman Plaza at the southeast entrance to New York City’s Central Park, the artwork sat in powerful contrast to the park as a democratic oasis, with its vast open areas, lush forests, and monuments and tributes to heroes and explorers. Gilded Cage allowed viewers to walk into and around the work, inviting them to not only interact with the installation, but also consider the inherent dualities of the world we live in.

Gilded Cage is one of two works realised by UAP in collaboration with the artist for Public Art Fund's exhibition ‘Ai Weiwei: Good Fences Make Good Neighbors’. One of Ai’s biggest public art projects to date, the project comprises more than 300 individual installations across the five boroughs of New York City. The project was on view to the public on October 12, 2017 - February 11, 2018.