Chinese artist to design replacement for Mermaid

COPENHAGEN -- A renowned Chinese artist has been chosen by the Danish government to design a replacement as the symbolic Little Mermaid goes on display at the Shanghai World Expo in 2010, the Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs announced on Tuesday.

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A video installation will be put where the famed statue currently sits during the six months as it stays in Shanghai as part of the Danish pavilion.

According to the ministry statement, the new artwork, to be designed by Chinese famous artist Ai Weiwei, is to reflect connection and difference between the Chinese and Danish cultures.

Ai Weiwei, born in Beijing in 1957, had served as the Chinese program consultant for the design of the Olympic National Stadium in Beijing, also called the Bird's Nest.

Copenhagen's iconic statue of The Little Mermaid, known from H.C. Andersen's fairy tale, is scheduled to arrive in China next April. Copenhagen's city council voted on March 12 to allow the statue to leave its perch in the Copenhagen harbor for a visit to China.