ai weiwei

while in tokyo (a week or so ago now)

i was lucky enough to have my trip coincide
with according to what? a current exhibition of Ai Wiewie's work
at the mori art museum
his work always surprises and challenges me
and as a contemporary artist he intrigues me . . .
something that i appreciate in the funny byways of contemporary art.

above are a few photos i took at the exhibition,
and although i have previously seen the vessels in another show
what Ai is trying to say with them was something i wanted to share. . .
the information card that sat with the vessels is as follows:

This series consists of Neolithic Age jars dipped in
industrial paints, as if they were glazes. The faded,
richly patterned surfaces of the jars are obscured by the bright
modern colours while the jars retain their original
form and function. With their materials and shapes
intact and only their surfaces changed, the
jars force us to consider the relationships
between the reality before our eyes and history and meaning,
as well as between objects and their essence.