Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 11am – 5pm
Wednesday: 11am – 5pm
Thursday: 11am – 5pm
Friday: 11am – 5pm
Saturday: 11am – 5pm
Sunday: 11am – 5pm
Please note the House opens at 12pm, with last entry to the House at 4.20pm. To visit the House you will need to pre-book a ticket. Click here to book now.
Please note Kettle’s Yard will be closed on 1 July 2022 for a private event.
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Find out What’s On at Kettle’s Yard here.
…Arranged within the beautiful, Jamie Fobert-designed galleries… this show sparkles with connections and ideas. 4 stars, The Telegraph
This is a political exhibition, but it is also intensely personal. It is a serious exhibition, but it is also playful.
This exhibition may be small, but it still packs a powerful punch… Studio International
We were delighted to present a new exhibition by Ai Weiwei (born 1957, Beijing, China), one of the world’s most renowned and significant artists. The exhibition explored truth, authenticity and value, as well as globalisation, the coronavirus pandemic and geopolitical crises.
In the ground floor galleries there was a single installation devised by Ai Weiwei. This was the first time the artist had juxtaposed historic Chinese objects with his own artworks. The antiquities on display were acquired by Ai Weiwei at an auction in Cambridge in 2020. He identified some as original, including from the Northern Wei (386 – 534CE) dynasty, and others as counterfeits, later copies of original works.
Ai Weiwei’s own works, beautifully crafted in jade, marble and porcelain, explore contemporary issues, draw on his life story and transform familiar artefacts into iconic objects. The exhibition also included one of the artist’s most famous images, ‘Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn’, made here in LEGO bricks. On the second floor of Kettle’s Yard, you could watch three of the artist’s documentary films, Coronation (2020), Cockroach (2020) and Human Flow (2017). These remarkable films examine and illuminate the pandemic in Wuhan, China, the student protests in Hong Kong and the global migration crisis. Two Fairytale Chairs (2007) were placed in the Kettle’s Yard House for visitors to use. In the Research Space on the first floor were books and films about the artist to read and watch.
Three of Ai Weiwei’s documentary films were screened in the Ede Room, on the second floor of Kettle’s Yard. Please see the film timings below.
Tuesdays
11.30am: Human Flow, 2017 (PG-13), 145 mins
2.30pm: Coronation, 2020 (12A), 113 mins
Wednesdays
11.30am: Coronation, 2020 (12A), 113 mins
2.30pm: Cockroach, 2020 (12A), 93 mins
Thursdays
11.30am: Human Flow, 2017 (PG-13), 145 mins
2.30pm: Cockroach, 2020 (12A), 93 mins
Fridays
11.30am: Human Flow, 2017 (PG-13), 145 mins
2.30pm: Coronation, 2020 (12A), 113 mins
Saturdays
11.30am: Coronation, 2020 (12A), 113 mins
2.30pm: Cockroach, 2020 (12A), 93 mins
Sundays
11.30am: Human Flow, 2017 (PG-13), 145 mins
2.30pm: Cockroach, 2020 (12A), 93 mins
Please be aware that the three documentary films contain mature themes, discretion is advised if visiting with children.
A series of special events ran alongside the exhibition.
17 March: Lunchtime Talk on ‘Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt’ with Carol Atack
1 April: In conversation: Ai Weiwei and Wang Fen
2 April: Creative Workshop exploring Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt
11 April: Workshop: Plastercasting: From Trash to Treasure
12 April: Workshop: Be the change: Art and social activism
27 April: Lunchtime Talk on ‘Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt’ with Prerona Prasad
30 April: ‘Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt’ Exhibition Introduction with Andrew Nairne
20 May: ‘Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt’ Exhibition Introduction with Elizabeth Brown
9 June: Lunchtime Talk on ‘Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt’ with Rosie Cooper and En Liang Khong
A Chinese lacquered greystone fragmentary hand clutching a vase. Courtesy Ai Weiwei Studio.
Ai Weiwei, Dragon Vase, 2017. Courtesy Ai Weiwei Studio.
Ai Weiwei, Surveillance Camera with Plinth, 2014. Courtesy Ai Weiwei Studio.
A Chinese grey veined stone Buddhist triad group. Courtesy Ai Weiwei Studio
Ai Weiwei, Han Dynasty Urn With Coca-Cola Logo, 2014. Courtesy Ai Weiwei Studio.
The galleries on the ground floor are wheelchair accessible. They can be accessed from the entrance area by steps or a ramp. There is a lift up to the Edlis Neeson Research Space and the Ede Room.
Kettle’s Yard,
Castle Street
Cambridge
CB3 0AQ
Tuesday – Sunday, 11am – 5pm
FREE, booking recommended
We are grateful for the support of the following:
Charles and Angela Chadwyck-Healey
John and Jennifer Crompton
Sabine Jaccaud
Suling Chan Mead
the Porthmeor Fund
Marc and Rachel Polonsky
Samantha de Reus and Felix Zhang
Bianca and Stuart Roden
Giles and Sonia Coode-Adams
Dr Carol Atack and Alex van Someren
the Andrew and Fiona Blake Trust Fund
Eve Corder
Dr Claire and Professor Martin Daunton
the Hubbard family
Midge and Simon Palley
Jonathan and Nicole Scott
Alex Haidas
Keith Moffat
And all those that wish to remain anonymous