Ai Weiwei's 'According to What?' at Mori Art Museum

The Mori Art Museum in Tokyo presents 'According to What?', a retrospective of Ai Weiwei from July 25 to November 8, 2009. The exhibition showcases works from 2000 onward, including new pieces created for the show, alongside projects from his design studio Fake Design, which co-designed the Beijing National Stadium (Bird's Nest) for the 2008 Olympics. Works like 'Cube in Ebony' (2009) reference earlier pieces such as 'Ton of Tea' (2006), and 'Tables with Two Legs on the Wall' evolve from three-legged versions from 2006. The first room, evoking American minimalism, features geometric sculptures like 'Cubic Meter Tables' (2009) aligned like Donald Judd's works, and dark cubes reminiscent of Tony Smith's 'Die'. 'House of Tea' (2009) is constructed entirely from pu-erh tea bricks. Ai's political engagement is evident in 'Snake Ceiling' (2009), a tribute to children who died in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, made from multicolored backpacks. Other works include 'Colored Vases' (2008) and 'Coca-Cola Vase' (1994), which critique consumer society. The exhibition highlights Ai's use of materials like wood in 'Fragments' (2005), 'Map of China' (2004), and 'Moon Chest' (2008), and includes urban videos such as 'Boulevard Chang'an' (2004).