Patrick Derom Gallery in Brussels presents The Art of Defiance, the first major retrospective exhibition in Belgium by Ai Weiwei

Patrick Derom Gallery presents the first major retrospective exhibition in Belgium dedicated to Ai Weiwei, bringing together more than 50 works spanning over three decades of the internationally renowned Chinese artist’s practice. Presented across two venues in Brussels’ Sablon district, the exhibition offers a broad survey of a body of work in which art, political engagement, cultural memory and freedom of expression are inextricably linked.

Ai Weiwei (°1957) is one of the most influential artists of our time. His international prominence stems both from his artistic practice and from his longstanding commitment to political and social freedom. Throughout his career, he has challenged state power, censorship and cultural repression, using art as a means to question established systems and create space for alternative perspectives.

Having himself been subjected to surveillance, detention and restrictions by the Chinese authorities, Ai Weiwei has made freedom of expression a recurring concern throughout his work. Across sculpture, installation, photography, film and architecture, he addresses questions of power, displacement, cultural heritage, human rights and individual freedom.

Central to his practice is the idea of transformation. Ai Weiwei frequently draws on the principle of the readymade, appropriating and altering existing objects, materials and images to question their cultural, political and symbolic value.

The exhibition at Patrick Derom Gallery brings together more than 50 works spanning over three decades of Ai Weiwei’s career. Emblematic works from the 1990s, including the photographic series Study of Perspective (1995-2011), enter into dialogue with iconic pieces such as Han Dynasty Urn with Coca-Cola Logo (2015), in which the artist confronts cultural heritage with the symbols and contradictions of contemporary society.

The exhibition also presents more recent developments in his practice, including toy brick compositions such as Illumination (2019) and works made with buttons, including F.U.C.K. (2024) Sculptural works such as Grapes (2007) and Strength (2019), alongside monumental installations including Left Right Studio Material (2018) and Backpack Snake (2008), demonstrate the continuous expansion of Ai Weiwei’s visual language.

Through this diversity of media, materials and scales, the retrospective reveals the remarkable coherence of Ai Weiwei’s practice and the questions that have shaped it for more than three decades: how power is exercised, how cultural memory is constructed or erased, and what it means to defend individual and artistic freedom.

In parallel with the exhibition in Brussels, the Musée Émile Verhaeren (Sint-Amands) presents an exhibition exploring the remarkable connection between the Belgian poet Émile Verhaeren and Ai Qing, Ai Weiwei’s father. Ai Qing (1910 - 1996) was the first to translate Verhaeren’s poetry into Chinese, playing an important role in introducing his work to a Chinese readership.

To accompany the retrospective, Hannibal Books is publishing a comprehensive catalogue featuring contributions by Edouard Derom, John Tancock, Thomas Crow, Lee Ambrozy, Rik Hemmerijckx and Lieven Van Den Abeele.

"Some exhibitions are planned, and some exhibitions
​come into being of their own accord, as if carried ​
​forward by a succession of encounters that, viewed
​in retrospect, appear improbably connected.
​This exhibition belongs to the latter category."
​— Edouard Derom

Ai Weiwei: The Art of Defiance
​From 19 September to 14 November 2026
​Patrick Derom Gallery
​Wolstraat / Rue aux Laines 1
​Grote Hertstraat / Rue du Grand Cerf 6
​1000 Brussels

Press contact

Micha Pycke
​Club Paradis
​+32 (0)486 680 070
​micha@clubparadis.be

Selected images

Ai WEIWEI, Study of Perspective: Tiananmen, 1995 Black-and-white photograph 90 × 127 cm Copyright: Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio Courtesy of Patrick Derom GalleryAi WEIWEI, Han Dynasty Vase with Coca-Cola Logo, 2015 Han Dynasty vase, paint 37 × 41.5 × 28 cm Photo: Photo by Vincent Everarts de Velp Copyright: Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio Courtesy of Patrick Derom Gallery

AI WEIWEI, Installation view with Left Right Studio Material, 2018, Montemor Studio Models, 2025, Illumination, 2019. Copyright: Copyright The Artist Courtesy of Patrick Derom GalleryAi WEIWEI, F.U.C.K., 2024 Buttons, fabric, four panels 188 × 110 cm each Photo: Photo by Vincent Everarts de Velp Copyright: Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio Courtesy of Patrick Derom Gallery

Ai WEIWEI, Ai Weiwei in Red, 2022 Toy bricks 114 × 114 cm Copyright: Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio Courtesy of Patrick Derom GalleryAi WEIWEI, Grapes, 2007 9 stools from the Qing Dynasty 79 x 137 x 160 cm Copyright: Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio Courtesy of Patrick Derom Gallery

AI WEIWEI, Installation view with Left Right Studio Material, 2018, Montemor Studio Models, 2025, Backpack Snake, 2008, Illumination, 2019, Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn, 2015. Copyright: Copyright The Artist Courtesy of Patrick Derom GalleryAi WEIWEI, Strength, 2019 Cast iron 183 × 210 × 160 cm Copyright: Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio Courtesy of Patrick Derom Gallery