Dutch designer Maarten Baas has made a huge chair to honour Chinese activist and Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo on behalf of Amnesty International.

“The Empty Chair” is some five metres tall and its back surges into the sky. Amnesty International commissioned the sculpture to call attention to the plight of writers, journalists, artists and activists in China.

They, and the lawyers representing them, have come under increased pressure since Liu Xiaobo won the Nobel Peace Prize and their human rights are being violated more and more often.

Since then, the rights group has documented over 100 cases of Chinese who have been arrested, or disappeared altogether, or have been placed under police surveillance.

The sculpture refers to the chair that Liu Xiaobo was not able to occupy during the Nobel Prize award ceremony because he is in a Chinese prison. His wife was subsequently placed under house arrest. 

The chair was conceived, Baas explains, to underline the importance of freedom: “Freedom matters to everyone, especially to people fighting for change, in whatever area. It matters to people who want to soar beyond what we know. In that sense, liberty is the basis for development.”

Liu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010 for his peaceful fight for human rights. Scores of Chinese keen to attend the ceremony were not allowed to leave the country.

Baas’ sculpture will be unveiled in Amsterdam next week, when Amnesty International celebrates its 50th anniversary.
 
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