I recently went to see the Ai Weiwei exhibition Evidence at the Martin Gropious Bau here in Berlin. Although I found the show on the whole a little disappointing, I still enjoyed it and I'm glad I saw it, especially since I missed the exhibit at the AGO in Toronto that took place just before I left. What was most surprising though is that visitors were allowed to take photos. This week I'll be taking you on a short tour of some of my favorite pieces from the exhibit.
Stools was definitely one of my favorite pieces. It's the first thing you see when you walk into the beautiful, old atrium of the building and it's very impressive. Here is the information from the sign:
"Stools: 2013, Wooden Stools
Stools features over 6,000 wooden stools from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the Republican period, gathered from villages all over China. They are a basic staple in many Chinese households. Each stool reveals traces of regular use, with a simple design and a solid structure which speak to a design structure that remains unchanged for hundreds of years.
The work forms a surface by connecting individual stools, covering the tile floor of the atrium of the Martin Gropius Bau. It harkens back to Soft Ground, 2009, an exact replication in carpet of the travertine floor at Munich's Haus der Kunst."
Spectacular... or even 'stoolacular'!!
ReplyDeleteGlad the exhibition caught up with you so you could take photos of it. ;)
ReplyDeleteVery interesting, but I guess my artistic sense is limited. This makes no sense to me. Stools are to sit on and no big deal. Unless it's a three-legged stool. That ain't easy - especially if you're trying to milk a cow. :)
ReplyDeleteI would hate to have to dust these.
ReplyDeleteI'll be looking forward to more glimpses of the art.
wow! collecting those must have taken a long time! really a neat display!
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely sight.
ReplyDeleteNice to see some pics. We tried to go a few weeks before but somebody said that you had to reserve a date and entrance via internet and that was completely sold out. We had only one day to go and stupid enough didn,t go to the exposition ourselfs. Later we heard that there was no row and you could get easy access. Still nice to see some of it.
ReplyDeleteThere was hardly a queue when I went and I didn't buy tickets online. It's still open until July though, if you want to come back. :)
DeleteQuite amazing!
ReplyDeleteI missed the show when it was in Toronto. This makes for a fascinating photograph!
ReplyDeleteWe were able to take photos here in Toronto too. This piece wasn't part of his show here. Looking forward to seeing some more shots!
ReplyDeleteThis was a slightly different show than in toronto, but a few of the pieces are the same.
DeleteThat is very impressive!
ReplyDeleteGlad that photography was approved. Impressive work with all those chairs.
ReplyDeleteSo they gathered a few thousand old Chinese stools in a room...
ReplyDeleteAt the Venice Bienalle last year, Al Weiwei also used hundreds of old Chinese stools, but there the stools were suspended from the ceiling in a wild array. See this: http://hartforddailyphoto.blogspot.com/2014/02/it-is-raining-chairs.html
ReplyDeleteThis is very impressive! I'm glad you were able to take pictures.
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