WEEK FIVE - 'Bird's Nest'

With the help of $423 million dollars and using the design of the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron Ai Wei Wei created the Beijing National Stadium. Creating the worlds largest steel structure is one major task to be given but Ai Wei Wei took it in his stride and created something incredible. As the head art consultent Wei Wei made sure to incorporate Chinese symbols of culture and heritage. The design which consisted of implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof; gave the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's nest". Due to the stadium's outward appearance, it was nicknamed "The Bird's Nest". The use is a compliment Li explained, "In China, a bird's nest is very expensive, something you eat on special occasions."

China's main objectives of this structure was to show how far their country had come and how innovative and creative its people are. This was definantly obvious when you saw the stadium, it made the world think of China as this great and powerful country. But Wei Wei's comments would shed a different light on Beijing's amazing piece of architecture. His comment was that the work was a "pretend smile" implying that it was a facade, hiding the truth of China's people and their standard of living. Being part of a dictatorship the people of China dont experience the same freedoms and libertys that us in democracys do and this is what Ai Wei Wei does'nt agree on. He see's the rules and restrictions enforced on the population holding them back from experiencing any greatness and pride in this work.

It is not opposition to the state, but rather in fighting for individualism and freedom of expression, freedom of human rights and justice … If you read newspapers today you see the problems created by this structure and by the effort to maintain power. It is against everything that human society should be fighting for.” - Ai Wei Wei

I feel that Ai Wei Wei is a hypocrite. He needs to make his mind up, either he wants to rise against the machine and speak his mind, or support his country and its political party and create a symbol of its superiority. Because his comments and actions thus far have made him sound like an idiot.

The 'Bird's Nest' is an amazing piece of architecture and I commend him on that, but having those strong beliefs about his country already and then going through with the job of creating something of that importance is ridiculous.

Ai Wei Wei sus your ish.

WEEK TWO - 'For The Love Of God'

Damien Hirst's 8601 fine diamond encrusted sculpture For The Love Of God, which cost 14 million pounds to create and sold for a mare 50 million pounds to a unknown investment group, making it the most expensive piece of artwork ever created. The piece has become very controversial because of the media used and where Hirst sourced these fine diamonds from.

Hirst recalls his mindset before creating the piece “I remember thinking it would be great to do a diamond one — but just prohibitively expensive,” he recalls. “Then I started to think — maybe that’s why it is a good thing to do. Death is such a heavy subject, it would be good to make something that laughed in the face of it.” But he states after creating the piece and thinking about the controversy created over the blood diamond trade in Africa he found himself looking like a villain. “That’s when you stop laughing,” Hirst says. “You might have created something that people might die because of. I guess I felt like Oppenheimer or something. What have I done? Because it’s going to need high security all its life.”

First of all I have to say I am all for Africa.  As soon as I get my degree I'm there.  But on this piece of work my hat goes off to Hirst. The controversy and criticism he has recieved from this artwork is incredible. Maybe the profit of this piece should have been used to aid Africa, but the skull on its own is a masterpiece. The ideas that Hirst was attempting to portray are definitely obvious. The piece doesn't make me think about Hirst on his quest for fame and fortune but more of a celebration of human life coming and going in and out of this world.  Fine, the 14 millions pounds worth of diamonds may seem excessive but what other media would have been adequate other than the most exquisite stone known to man. It's what every human being is after before death - success, which is usually measured by wealth which is where the stones come in. Shining a little light on death is a very powerful concept; which through the skull Hirst has grasped perfectly.

I think people need to look at skull as a piece of artwork first, then discuss the moral ethics behind it.