CAMOUFLAGE | Ai Weiwei

Ai Weiwei’s Camouflage installation at FDR Four Freedoms State Park transforms the solemn memorial into a temporary space for reflection on freedom, conflict, and concealment. Draping a large section of the park in camouflage-patterned netting, subtly adorned with cat imagery, the piece blurs the lines between protection and exposure. At its center, a wooden pavilion provides a quiet shelter, where visitors can engage directly with the artwork by writing personal reflections on ribbons and tying them to the netting. The act of participation becomes central to the experience, inviting people to consider their own relationship to the Four Freedoms—speech, worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. By integrating whimsical visuals with themes of surveillance, war, and resistance, the installation challenges viewers to question what remains hidden in times of crisis and what truths emerge when voices are given space. The work brings urgency and intimacy to a monumental public site.