SYDNEY.- The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA Australia) announces today one of the world’s most influential contemporary artists, Ai Weiwei (b. 1957, Beijing), as the 2026 Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission artist. Ai will unveil a major new public artwork on the iconic Tallawoladah Lawn on the Warrane/Sydney Harbour foreshore in September 2026.

Ai is an acclaimed global artist who for more than four decades has used sculpture, film, architecture, writing and social media to move hearts, change minds and challenge authority.

The artist first found critical acclaim with artworks such as Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn and Study of Perspective (both 1995), before reaching a global audience with large-scale installations and architectural projects. These include co-designing with architects Herzog & de Meuron the iconic ‘Bird’s Nest’ stadium for the 2008 Beijing Olympics and filling Tate’s Turbine Hall with 100 million handmade porcelain Sunflower Seeds in 2010. He is well known to Australian audiences for his installation Law of the Journey (2017), displayed as part of the 21st Biennale of Sydney in 2018, and has exhibited in galleries across the country. Most recently, he has created works in response to his experiences travelling through conflict-affected regions in Ukraine.

His new work for the Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission is set to be one of the most thought provoking and impactful public art works presented in Australia in 2026.

Ai Weiwei said: ‘To be invited to participate in the MCA’s commissioned creation of an artwork is a great honour, and it filled me with excitement.’

MCA Australia Director, Suzanne Cotter said the selection of Ai is a testament to the principles of the Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission to deliver significant, statement-making contemporary art created especially for the public domain, and a demonstration of the MCA’s ongoing ambition to bring the work of the world’s best living artists to Australia.





‘Ai Weiwei is an artist whose voice resonates far beyond the art world. This Commission will be an important moment for Sydney – ambitious in scale, profound in message, and will engage everyone who visits this iconic location.’

CEO of The Balnaves Foundation, Hamish Balnaves said: ‘The Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission was established to ensure Australians could have meaningful interactions with artists of global standing through accessible public art. Ai Weiwei exemplifies everything this Commission stands for: his practice challenges us to think deeply about humanity, power and responsibility. We are proud to support a work that will speak to audiences from all walks of life in such a significant place. This Commission honours my father Neil Balnaves’ belief that art should be ambitious, accessible to all and capable of shaping how we see the world.’