Asia Society presents more than 200 photographs taken by Ai Weiwei that capture the culture of 1980s New York and the lives of expatriate Chinese artists in the East Village. The exhibition, curated by Asia Society Museum Director Melissa Chiu, is the first U.S. presentation of this previously unknown archive. It will be on view from now until August 14. (Learn more about Weiwei.)

NEW YORK, June 27, 2011 — Asia Society Museum Director Melissa Chiu offers background on the exhibition Ai Weiwei: New York Photographs 1983-1993 and reflects on Ai’s recent release by the Chinese authorities.

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The exhibition marks the first time Ai Weiwei’s New York Photographs series is being shown outside of China.
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“The New York I knew no longer exists. … Looking back on the past, I can see that these photographs are facts, but not necessarily true. … The present always surpasses the past, and the future will not care about today.”
— Ai Weiwei, 2008