Questions
Answers
Our trusted network of 1stDibs sellers answer common questions
Why did Ai Weiwei make Sunflower Seeds?
1 Answer
Ai Weiwei made Sunflower Seeds to provide a political critique. During his childhood, the Chinese artist frequently saw propaganda posters depicting Mao Zedong, founder of the Chinese Communist Party, as the sun and the citizens of China as sunflowers thriving beneath his rays. His installation featuring 100 million individually handmade sunflower seeds symbolized the poverty that the artist experienced while growing up in Communist China and the reduction of people as individuals / the grouping of individual human beings into a mass that occurred under Communist rule. Shop a collection of Ai Weiwei art on 1stDibs.
1stDibs ExpertFebruary 13, 2024
Related Questions
- Does Ai Weiwei paint?1 Answer
- What does Ai Weiwei s art represent?1 Answer
- What is seeded glass?1 Answer
- Who makes Vitra?1 Answer
- What does Alessi make?1 Answer
Shop for Ai Weiwei Art on 1stDibs
"Coca Cola" Vase
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Murano, cast vase in translucent red glass. Includes original packaging and ply presentation box. Edition of 300. Produced in 2023. This work comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.
Category
2010s Pop Art Sculptures
Materials
Glass
Cats Black, 2022
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Lovely work from the artist.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Mixed Media
Materials
Screen
Ai Weiwei, Coca-Cola Glass Vase - Limited Edition Sculpture, Engraved Signature
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Hamburg, DE
Ai Weiwei (Chinese, b. 1957)
Coca-Cola Glass Vase, 2023
Medium: Cast vase in translucent red glass
Dimensions: ⌀ 19 cm x 21 cm x 21.2 cm (7 1/2 × 8 3/10 × 8 3/10 in)
Edition of 300: ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Glass
Everything is Art, Everything is Politics By Ai Weiwei
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Dubai, Dubai
Everything is Art, Everything is Politics
By Ai Weiwei
Ai Weiwei is a prominent Chinese contemporary artist and activist known for his bold and provocative works that challenge po...
Category
2010s Contemporary More Art
Materials
Wood
Untitled 2015 (2015) (Grey) (signed)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Woodbury, CT
The dust jackets for the artist edition of the catalogue of Ai Weiwei’s 2015 exhibition at the Royal Academy have been individually painted by the artist in one of ten colours: black, white, yellow, red, green, blue, purple, turquoise, lilac and grey. In each, a bold, calligraphic stroke sweeps across the paper to produce a painting of great vibrancy and spontaneity in celebration of the tactile qualities of the medium. Using a fully loaded brush, Ai has allowed the paint to run and dribble down the paper under its own weight, producing works with an affinity to his Coloured Vases, which he creates by dipping antique Chinese ceramics...
Category
2010s Paintings
Materials
Paint
Untitled
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Washington , DC, DC
The present work is from the artist’s “Becoming” series, which consists of 147 photographs documenting the transformation of a green field into Beijing’s new national airport, the la...
Category
