Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) is an art installation created by contemporary artist and political activist Ai Weiwei. ... The work consisted of one hundred million individually hand-crafted porcelain sunflower seeds which filled the gallery's 1,000 square metre Turbine Hall to depth of ten centimetres.

Where is the Kui Hua Zi?

One of Ai Weiwei's most famous political works is titled Kui Ha Zi, or Sunflower Seeds. It is presently located at Tate Modern, London. The installation consists of more than 100 million tiny, handmade porcelain sunflower seeds.

What is the meaning behind Ai Weiwei sunflower seeds?

Each ceramic seed was individually hand-sculpted and hand-painted by specialists working in small-scale workshops. ... Yet Ai remembers the sharing of sunflower seeds as a gesture of human compassion, providing a space for pleasure, friendship and kindness during a time of extreme poverty, repression and uncertainty.

How did Ai Weiwei make the sunflower seeds?

Ai Weiwei appointed over 1,600 artisans in Jingdezhen for two and a half years to create his huge pile of ceramic seeds. The sunflower husks were manufactured from the kaolin extracted from the local mountains.

Why did Ai Weiwei drop the urn?

The meaning of Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn

You see, it enraged most antique collectors, but Ai was out to remind them about the evils of the Mao regime. It was a crystal-clear depiction of what the Communist regime was doing to the elites.

Ai Weiwei's Sunflower seeds at the Tate

20 related questions found

Why is Ai Weiwei famous?

Ai Weiwei emerged as a vital instigator in Chinese cultural development, an architect of Chinese modernism, and one of the nation's most vocal political commentators. Ai Weiwei encapsulates political conviction and his personal poetry in his many sculptures, photographs and public works.

How do you pronounce Q in Chinese?

In Mandarin, “q” doesn't make the /kw/ sound. It makes a very light version of the /ch/ sound. But it isn't exactly the /ch/ sound though, and there aren't any parts of an English word that mimic its sound. Tongue placement: Touch your tongue to the roof of your mouth and say “choo choo” like a train.

How do you pronounce the name Xin?

Pronounce Names

In Chinese, "Xin" should be pronounced as the english word "sin", not "shin". Sometimes even native Chinese people mispronounce it as 'shin', this is due to their accent, many Chinese actually cant speak perfect mandarin.

Are Ai Weiwei Sunflower Seeds real?

Ai Weiwei's Sunflower Seeds is made up of millions of small works, each apparently identical, but actually unique. However realistic they may seem, these life-sized sunflower seed husks are in fact intricately hand-crafted in porcelain.

What do sunflower seeds mean in China?

The sunflower seed is a common street snack in China, an everyday object from the artist's childhood. It evokes the memory of hardships and hunger during the Cultural Revolution, and the era of socialist planned economy with the collective worship of the ”sun” - Chairman Mao.

What injustices does Ai Wei Wei address in his art?

Subversive seeds

Ai Weiwei often uses his art to critique political and economic injustice. This can be seen in work such as his 2010 installation, Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds) at Tate Modern, London.

What are the health benefits of sunflower seeds?

Sunflower seeds are a source of many vitamins and minerals that can support your immune system and increase your ability to fight off viruses. These include both zinc and selenium. Zinc plays a vital role in the immune system, helping the body maintain and develop immune cells.

What is Pinyin used for?

Pinyin without tone marks is used to spell Chinese names and words in languages written with the Latin alphabet and also in certain computer input methods to enter Chinese characters.

How do you say R in Chinese?

Pinyin's "r" Sound

This may seem strange, but the Mandarin r- sound really is very similar to the ch-, sh-, and zh- sounds. r- is pronounced by making the "French j" sound like in the words "leisure" and "pleasure". While making that sound, slowly pull the tip of your tongue further into the back of your mouth.

What last name is Tse?

Tse Surname Meaning

Tse is a common last name found among Overseas Chinese communities around the world. In fact, "Tse" is the transliteration of several different Chinese surnames. Its meaning varies depending on how it is spelled in Chinese, and which dialect it is pronounced in.

Is Ai Weiwei postmodern?

In his work Weiwei manages to harmonize Western postmodernism with the tendency towards handcrafting, most present during China's cultural revolution. ...