The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum have been diligently tracking press coverage since artist Ai Weiwei was detained on April 3.
Among the latest news links they’re circulating is an AFP article, included in today’s online edition of Le Figaro as well as many other publications, reporting that Ai Weiwei has been able to see his wife. The Guggenheim petition to release Ai Weiwei is mentioned at the end of the article:
http://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/2011/05/16/97001-20110516FILWWW00370-ai-weiwei-a-pu-voir-sa-femme.php
ARTINFO.COM has a great roundup on this latest development:
http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/37692/ai-weiweis-wife-finally-allowed-visit-while-the-artists-dealers-weigh-art-hk-participation/
Meanwhile, the petitition has gathered 135,000 names from 174 countries:
http://www.change.org/petitions/call-for-the-release-of-ai-weiwei
Besides the visit from his wife, other developments of note include Assistant Secretary of State Mike Posner’s recent visit to China, in which this initiative and the growing concern of the international art world was directly conveyed to Chinese authorities; and the recent openings of Ai Weiwei’s Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads in New York and London, which attracted wide media attention.
MSNBC article with excerpts from an interview with U.S. State Department official Michael Posner: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42821407/ns/us_news-life/
ARTINFO covers Ai Weiwei’s first major public sculpture installation opening in New York on May 4:
http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/37609/pomp-politics-and-celebrity-attend-the-unveiling-of-ai-weiweis-zodiac-sculpture-in-new-york/
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