Ai Weiwei
(Born 1957, China)
Ai Weiwei is a Chinese contemporary artist and activist. Ai collaborated with Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron as the artistic consultant on the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Summer Olympics.As a political activist, he has been highly and openly critical of the Chinese Government's stance on democracy and human rights. Since being allowed to leave China in 2015, he has been living in Berlin, Germany, with his family, working on installations, and traveling extensively.
Ton of Tea
2006 Pu´er tea
The one-ton cube of dried Pu´er leaves also references the tradicional Chinese method of transporting tea tea by compressing it into blocks. Its massive weight and size evoke the enormous scale of tea production and trade.
Weiwei has done other cubes. The artist recalibrates the meaning of Chinese culture by combining these signifiers of eberyday in China with Minimalism and Conceptual art, in dialogue with the wider world.
Sunflowers Seeds
2010 Porcelain
In this work, the artist uses the Minimalism concept of serially to critique the state of China´s economy, and the individual´s relationship to the wider society.
Yet each of the millions of ceramic seeds are unique, having been crafted by artisans in Jingdezhen, a city historically known for its production of porcelain. The attention drawn to the skill and attention of the workers challenges the “Made in China”, namely the cheap mass production. The sheer number of seeds could also be a reference to the vast Chinese production.
The sunflowers also carry important references to Cultural Revolution, representing the the Chinese people turning towards their leadership.
