Ai Weiwei: Vase-Smashing Is Useless
A Miami painter who destroyed a priceless Han dynasty vase in a “spontaneous protest†at the city’s new art museum, the Perez, claims he thought he was smashing a cheap garden pot. “I thought it was a common clay pot like you would find at Home Depot, frankly,†Maximo Caminero, 51, said in an interview. “I didn’t know it was that amount. I feel so sorry about it, for sure. Caminero said he picked up the ancient urn from an exhibition curated by the Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei (pictured) at the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) on Sunday and threw it to the ground because “the museum only displayed international artists†and ignored the work of locals. Ai Weiwei responded: ‘“Damaging other people’s property or disturbing a public program doesn’t really support his cause,†he said in an interview in Beijing. “You cannot stand in front of a classical painting and kill somebody and say that you are inspired by it,†Ai said.
