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This fall, the southern tip of Roosevelt Island will be swathed in camouflage netting, but not for military drills.
World-renowned artist and activist Ai Weiwei is set to unveil “Camouflage,” a monumental new installation at Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms State Park that marks both his return to New York and the launch of a new public art initiative: Art X Freedom.
Opening on September 10 to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, “Camouflage” will transform the park into a contemplative sanctuary draped in netting. Visitors will be able to contribute hand-written reflections on freedom, tying them to the fabric of the work in a gesture of collective memory and resistance.
The installation will be on view on site through December 1, 2025.
Weiwei, whose past NYC installations famously targeted immigration policies and state surveillance, described the project to the New York Times as “a personal commentary on what is unfolding politically and culturally in our time.” At the center of the piece: a towering architectural structure rising above the bust of FDR, cloaked in mesh and inscribed with a stark Ukrainian proverb about the dual nature of war.
The installation won't showcase your standard issue camo, but, instead, will feature a custom animal-print version boasting cats, a nod to a rescue center located near the park.
“I didn’t want to use conventional military camouflage, because I find it personally repulsive,” the artist told the Times. “We’ve all seen too much harm associated with that pattern—it’s essentially a uniform that negates life.”
The installation is the inaugural commission of Art X Freedom, a new program from the Four Freedoms Park Conservancy that invites artists to explore themes of liberty, human rights and justice. It’s the first initiative of its kind to activate a presidential memorial as a platform for forward-looking contemporary expression. Future commissions will be awarded through an open call, with a $25,000 prize and realization support for the winning artist.