Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Repetition

Both the works of Ai Wewei and Louise Bourgeois reflect the aesthetically appealing and meaningful use of repetition within art. Ai Weiwei currently has an exhibit at the Tate Modern containing millions of porcelain, painted sunflower seeds scattered on the ground. During China's cultural revolution, Chairman Mao was represented as the sun with his millions of followers seen as sunflowers. The sunflower seeds represent the Chinese people in their vast number. Each individual seed has a story, for each seed was made by a person with a story. Thus, though the seeds may seem identical from the outside, each come with a unique background. A similar misconception exists for the Chinese. Many foreigners perceive the Chinese as clones, each Chinese person as just another sunflower seed. Though the art work is minimal in aesthetic, its significance is multifaceted. The sunflower seeds can be interpreted in a variety of ways. Rachel Whiteread was another artist to incorporate repetition into her art work. Her exhibit, titled "Embankment," contains many white boxes stacked in various ways. The boxes represent a highly cluttered, transient time within Whiteread's life which was dominated by moving boxes. While moving her own belongings, Whiteread received the grave news that her mother passed away. Whiteread then had to pack up her mother's belongings as well, and her life seemed to be consumed by boxes. Just as each sunflower seed of Wei seems identical, each box outwardly appears to be the same. However, to Whiteread, each box contains a unique collection of memories of both her life and her mother's life. Both Whiteread and Weiwei represent the powerful tool of repetition. By repetition, the object quickly grabs the viewer's attention and emphasizes its importance.









-Tina

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