Ai Weiwei – Stacked
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei presents his first solo show at the San Gimignano Gallery in Tuscany, Italy with a self-titled exhibition that acts as a celebration of the artist’s sculptures, video and photographic works. The show, including many previously unseen works in Italy, emphases the versatility of the artist and the cornerstones of his art: deferential respect for the Chinese tradition, combined with a great ability to project himself into modernity and an unflagging social and political awareness.
The stand-out piece at the exhibition, Stacked is a stunning, walk-around installation comprising of 760 bicycles, it is a continuation of Ai Weiwei’s 2008 work Very Yao, which is also presented on the main stage of the gallery. Ai Weiwei uses the bicycle as an iconic object: the principal means of transport in China – “Forever” (Yong Jiu Pai) is the most common bicycle brand in the country – it represents the lives of millions of Chinese citizens and what’s more; with its chain and sprocket mechanism, it depicts the matrix of the labour force: the people.
Ai Weiwei – ‘Stacked’ is on show at the San Gimignano Gallery til 16 February.
