F Grass
Vancouver Biennale
Open Air Museum
F Grass
Ai Weiwei, China
Ai Weiwei is one of the most influential artists and human rights activists of our time. His passport withheld since 2011, he chose this location through photos and created the site-specific artwork from his Beijing studio.
Using ordinary grass as a metaphor, he creates something akin to a blockade of iron spikes. From above, the individual cast iron blades collectively take the shape of an “F”. Each blade is symbolic of countless ordinary individuals who collectively become a resilient, powerful force.
In China, the character for “grass” is pronounced the same as the F-word obscenity. Ai Weiwei has often used it interchangeably as a defiant act against censorship.
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DO NOT CROSS. RISK OF INJURY.
Photo of the artwork: http://imgur.com/pzo3hJT
Close-up of the blades: http://imgur.com/U2gj9p1
More information: http://www.vancouverbiennale.com/artworks/f-grass/
Attribution: Jennie Eggleston (http://www.instagram.com/jeggle)