Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads

© Ai Weiwei

Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads

Currently not on view

Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads,

2010

Ai Weiwei, born 1957, Beijing, China; active New York, NY, Beijing, and Europe
L.2012.27.1-.12
Twelve bronze animal heads—representing the Chinese zodiac figures—once topped the stone bodies of an elaborate fountain clock, the centerpiece of the imperial gardens of the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1735–96). Looted in 1860 by British and French forces, they remain central to efforts to repatriate Chinese art.Fabricating his own zodiac heads, the dissident artist Ai Weiwei created enlarged and dramatized interpretations of these sculptures, extending the artist’s longstanding interest in the symbolic power and political economy of cultural heritage.

Information

Title
Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads
Dates

2010

Maker
Ai Weiwei
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
1. Snake: 299.7 × 134.6 × 160 cm (118 × 53 × 63 in.) 2. Ox: 325.1 × 157.5 × 160 cm (128 × 62 × 63 in.) 3. Dragon: 340.4 × 167.6 × 195.6 cm (134 × 66 × 77 in.) 4. Dog: 302.3 × 134.6 × 172.7 cm (119 × 53 × 68 in.) 5. Monkey: 302.3 × 134.6 × 142.2 cm (119 × 53 × 56 in.) 6. Ram: 304.8 × 152.4 × 157.5 cm (120 × 60 × 62 in.) 7. Tiger: 327.7 × 134.6 × 157.5 cm (129 × 53 × 62 in.) 8. Horse: 302.3 × 134.6 × 154.9 cm (119 × 53 × 61 in.) 9. Rat: 302.3 × 134.6 × 160 cm (119 × 53 × 63 in.) 10. Rabbit: 302.3 × 134.6 × 160 cm (119 × 53 × 63 in.) 11. Pig: 302.3 × 134.6 × 170.2 cm (119 × 53 × 67 in.) 12. Rooster: 365.8 × 134.6 × 139.7 cm (144 × 53 × 55 in.)
Credit Line
Private collection
Object Number
L.2012.27.1-.12

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