Murano Glass.
Signed and numbered on the accompanying certificate and inscribed on the bottom.
Vase (blue) (2024) by Ai Weiwei merges traditional Chinese ceramic forms with the global language of contemporary branding. Made from hand-blown blue Murano glass, the piece features the embossed Coca-Cola logo—an emblem of Western consumerism—transformed into a sculptural surface. This juxtaposition of material elegance and cultural critique is characteristic of Weiwei's practice, which often challenges ideas of value, appropriation, and cultural identity. Each vase is inscribed on the underside and comes with a signed and numbered certificate. The edition is limited to 100 examples.
Ai Weiwei (China, 1957) is a globally influential artist and activist blending conceptual art with political commentary. Known for provocative works like Sunflower Seeds and Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn, he critiques authority, censorship, and human rights abuses. His installations, films, and public interventions challenge societal norms and inspire global dialogue.
GlassGlass is a transparent solid that varies in composition depending on the type. Artists use different types of glass to create art forms such as stained glass, blown glass, and various decorated pieces. Glass can be cut, textured, overlaid, engraved, and shaped in many ways to produce intricate and beautiful works of art.
Murano Glass.
Signed and numbered on the accompanying certificate and inscribed on the bottom.
Vase (blue) (2024) by Ai Weiwei merges traditional Chinese ceramic forms with the global language of contemporary branding. Made from hand-blown blue Murano glass, the piece features the embossed Coca-Cola logo—an emblem of Western consumerism—transformed into a sculptural surface. This juxtaposition of material elegance and cultural critique is characteristic of Weiwei's practice, which often challenges ideas of value, appropriation, and cultural identity. Each vase is inscribed on the underside and comes with a signed and numbered certificate. The edition is limited to 100 examples.
Ai Weiwei (China, 1957) is a globally influential artist and activist blending conceptual art with political commentary. Known for provocative works like Sunflower Seeds and Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn, he critiques authority, censorship, and human rights abuses. His installations, films, and public interventions challenge societal norms and inspire global dialogue.
If my art has nothing to do with people's pain and sorrow, what is 'art' for?
- Ai Weiwei
Receiving worldwide acclaim for his activism, Ai Weiwei’s work spans across several mediums as an architect, curator and filmmaker. Ai’s most recognised social commentaries pertain to the Chinese government and the loss of traditional culture; Sunflower Seeds - a piece displayed at the Tate Modern - featured the scattering of over 60 million hand-painted porcelain ‘seeds’, an allusion to the destructive nature of mass consumption and the subsequent loss of individuality. Prior to the cultural revolution that took place in China, Ai and his family had first been sent to a labour camp, then subsequently exiled for 16 years. Upon the Chinese reform, Ai moved to New York and was notably influenced by the work of Andy Warhol and Marcel Duchamp; he also met beat poet, Allen Ginsberg, around this time, and developed his own philosophies on the schism between Western and traditional cultures. Coca Cola Vase is another of Ai’s most acclaimed works; a Han dynasty urn that has been emblazoned with the Coca Cola logo – another nod to the ever-expanding consumerist culture. (Artist website)
Sometimes referred to as Conceptualism, this is an art form where the idea(s) or concept(s) behind the work take precedence over material concerns and traditional aesthetics. Many conceptual artworks can be created by anyone simply by following written instructions. The concept or idea is the most essential aspect of the artwork.