Book Review: Circle of Animals
A new book examines the symbolism behind Ai Weiwei’s re-creation of twelve animal zodiac heads
- http://clatl.com/atlanta/ImageArchives?by=1223504
- Ai Weiwei with zodiac head of a dog in 2010.
“They’re just like a toilet seat, or anything else,” says artist Ai Weiwei about the zodiac heads from the fountain of the Yuanming Yuan. It’s an idealistic sentiment: the original heads, taken from the palace outside of Beijing in 1860 during the Second Opium War, have become powerful nationalistic symbols for many Chinese. In his 2010 sculptural work Circle of Animals/ Zodiac Heads, Ai recreates the twelve animal heads in two sets—one in monumental bronze for public display, another set in gold for museums. It’s a complicated artistic act that carries with it a whole reservoir of cultural, political, aesthetic and personal associations, most of which are likely unfamiliar to many Westerners. The essays and interviews collected in the new book Circle of Animals edited by Susan Delson offer interesting insights into the rich and complicated symbolism of the heads and of Ai’s work.