Ai Weiwei Sunflower Seeds is a descriptive article on Ai Weiwei's sculptural installation of the same name from a website dedicated to the artwork itself. The article is aimed to introduce Ai's largest porcelain installation and it's relevance to the Chinese culture, socio-economics and political context. The infamous artwork was accessed with Feldman's four steps to art criticism, description, analysis, interpretation and evaluation, helping readers get a better image and understanding of the installation.
"Heap of grains", "beach" and carpets" were used to describe the ever-changing structure of Sunflower Seeds. The author started off by giving a brief background information and exhibition history of the artwork in addition to describing the visual elements of the impressive work of art made up of millions of pieces of "singular tiny sculptures" giving visual facts of the installation as well as enhance the imagination of readers who have yet to see the actual installation.
The author also laid out the significant principles of art and the elaborate process of making the Sunflower Seeds. "After a striking 30-step procedure, each seed, hand-painted and fired at 1,300 degrees, is unique and unpredictable." The diverse and traditional techniques employed has created a massive "social sculpture" reflecting the Chinese society today. The analysis breaks down the procedures and how the elements were put together to convey the artist's intentions.
The author mentioned multiple common interpretations of Ai's Sunflower Seeds, implying that the typical Chinese street snack could be an indication of the artist's childhood, a reminder of the hardships during the Cultural Revolution and the era of socialist economy. The article also suggested that the artwork is perhaps closely related to the modern society, especially in manufacturing process, every single sunflower seed similar yet unique as " every fragmented individual in this digital era ", indicating the that the individuals alienated from the process, products and co-workers as Karl Marx suggested, yet Ai believes that it also signifies the remarkable strength and power of the people when brought together, working as a whole.
It is impressive how Ai is able to address the social, political and economical issue in China through an elaborate yet simple work of art. Sunflower seeds brings into focus the phenomenon of mass production and consumerism in the age of globalization China. The author often brought up the grim truth that China is exploited as a manufacturing force for western consumerism, yet this very work of art discuss is an ironic reflection of reality. The author also theorized that the artwork may be influenced by 'Fairytale' (2007), 'Through' (2007-08) and 'World Map' (2006), each in different aspects such as traditional techniques, symbolic appliances of materials and praised the artist for his provocative approach to sch controversial yet easily neglected topics of today's society.
As the article was written specifically for the Sunflower Seeds official website, the review was generally positive and may be somewhat bias. Regardless, the author was able to efficiently illustrate the visual and philosophical concept of the infamous artwork of Ai Weiwei that boldly address the societal issues related to the Chinese culture, tradition and contemporary society, forcing the viewers to reconsider and view the social structure from a different perspective.
Reference
Ai Weiwei Sunflower Seeds. Available at: http://www.aiweiweiseeds.com/about-ai-weiweis-sunflower-seeds ( Accessed: 15 April 2018 )