Artist and activist Ai Weiwei unveils a new Lego artwork at Design Museum London inspired by Claude Monet’s “Water Lilies” to challenge our notion of reality and beauty.
Ai Weiwei has unveiled a new artwork inspired by Claude Monet’s monumental “Water Lilies” (1914-26) triptych. Made entirely of Lego, “Water Lilies #1” is a recreation of one of the most famous paintings by the French Impressionist. By choosing Monet, and working with industrial materials and pigments, the renowned Chinese artist and activist wants us to challenge our notion of reality and beauty.
At over 15m long and made from nearly 650,000 studs of Lego bricks in 22 colors, “Water Lilies #1” is Ai’s most considerable Lego work to date. It will span the entire length of one of the walls in the Design Museum gallery in London when it goes on exhibition next month as part of “Ai Weiwei: Making Sense,” the Chinese artist’s first design-focused exhibition and his biggest UK show in eight years.
“Water Lilies,” the main focus of Monet’s artistic work in the final decades of his life, captures nature’s serene beauty. Yet the lily pond and the garden depicted are artificial creations, designed by Monet for the gardens of his home in Giverny in Normandy when he had the nearby river Epte partially diverted for this idealized landscape.
