Chinese controversial artist and his metal art

Ai Weiwei, a Chinese contemporary artist, born in Beijing, China is active in sculpture, installation, architecture, photography, film but also in social, political and cultural criticism. He collaborated with Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron as the artistic consultant on the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Olympics.

Inspiration in metal

Ai Weiwei created a massive metal bird wing. He wanted to represent freedom but the installation is immobilized like a trapped animal inside one of America’s most notorious prisons – Alcatraz. It can be only seen from above. Visitors are placed as an authority but they still don’t have full access to the installation.

It weights more than five tons and the whole sculpture is earthbound. The wings are made from reflective solar cookers and kettles used in Tibet. His artwork is kind of a word play, merging together the material quality – metal and concept of freedom.

Inspiration in bicycles

Cycling is one of the most common forms of transportation in China. However, Ai Weiwei removed their primary function and made the static. There isn’t anymore freedom associated with cycling and bicycles are piled together forming a labyrinth that keeps them immobile and useless. The visitor can stand below the installation and observe details from new angle and gain a new perspective on the bicycles.

In Shanghai Metal Corporation we follow the new trends and offers our customers high quality metal and steel products. For more details please visit our website our send us inquiry.  Our English speaking staff will be more than glad to help you. You could also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LindkedIn. If you have a smart phone or tablet, download our new application by scanning QR code below.

Silvia M.//SMC Editor

You can find more articles by this author here.

Credits and pictures : wikipedia.com, inhabitat.com, aiweiwei.com, googleimages

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Miss Liberty Chopped Up and Found All Over NYC

It may sound absurd but it’s true. Pieces of the Miss Liberty’s body can be found scattered across two boroughs in NYC. But don’t worry! This is only a replica of the Statue of Liberty as the original one still stands untouched on its very Liberty Island since given as a gift by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi in 1886.

Creator of ‘We the people’ collection, Vietnamese artist Danh Vo spent the last four years recreating the statue in 250 full-scale individual pieces. “I wanted to do something that everyone had a relationship to, and make it a bit unfamiliar. It’s kind of like creating a Frankenstein that gets its own life”, says Vo.

Using the same fabrication techniques and copper material as the original Lady Liberty, the artwork was “conceived in Germany, fabricated in Shanghai, supported by his French gallery, collections and art institutions worldwide, and dispersed to exhibition venues in more than 15 countries”, explains Vo.

“When Bartholdi created the Statue of Liberty…he created an image and a political agenda,” adds Vo. “What I’m doing with it is a shift of scale and shift of meaning.” He added that his work “is more a project that should evoke discussion in the place that it is exhibited. And we’ll have to wait to see what that will be”.

In collaboration with Public Art Fund 53 colossal fragments of Liberty can be found at Brooklyn Bridge Park and City Hall Park until December 5^th 2014. ‘We the people’ collection presents nearly a fifth of Vo’s project and comprises body parts of the Miss Liberty such as the statue’s right sleeve, the one that covers her right bearing arm, the ear of the statue placed beneath the cornerstone of the historic building, and links of the chain found at the feet.

“When you’re looking at a massive piece of copper that you have a very intimate relationship [with] right in front of you,” says Andira Hickey, the Public Art Fund’s associate curator, “and see it completely transformed into a full figure that you can recognize in the distance, it’s such an evocative metaphor for the multitude of perspectives you can have of an icon like that.”

If you are not a private collector this is a great opportunity to come very close to Miss Liberty and experience the magnificence of the statue. And if you look carefully enough you might be able to recognize the dismantled pieces of the Statue of Liberty as you know.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of metals such as copper, widely used in artistic artifacts. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. Our English speaking professionals will be more than pleased to help you. Follow us on  LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code.

Source and photo credit: brooklynbridgepark.org, online.wsj.com, nytimes.com, hqdesktop.net

Camilla G.//SMC Editor

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New Trend in Modern Retailing Inspired by Japanese ‘Origami’

Inspired by Japanese paper folding ‘origami’ new trend in retailing is portable and aesthetically appealing. The Kiosks created by London-based architecture firm, Make Architects, in collaboration with metal fabricators, Entech Environmental Technology Ltd are a success and use models of origami throughout the design process. Two unique prefabricated retail kiosks opened to the public for the first time at Canary Wharf’s Ice Sculpturing Festival in London in the beginning of this year.

“It was only when we were making [physical] models that we suddenly realized something was jamming, and that was really interesting.” Later, the designers built a full-scale mock-up out of cardboard and foam board. “That way we could really understand how it works,” explains Sean Affleck, Make Architects’ lead project architect.

The outer shell is made of 2-millimeter-thick aluminum plate which is crucial to mimic paper due to its lightweight and easy manipulation. Any other material would be too heavy.

Although lightweight the aluminum shell is not less resistant; the powder-coated aluminum cladding panels are highly durable against weather and graffiti, requiring minimal maintenance. The rest of the body uses stainless steel fabricated in-house.

To create a proper system that allowed opening and shutting the pop-up store with easiness the metal was folded, pressed and rolled. Such a process created an integral hinge into which a stainless steel rod was inserted. Very convenient a remote-control can do the job of opening and closing the kiosk with no stress.

“[The kiosk] had to be solid, but lightweight, so then that led us to origami,” says Affleck. “[You] end up with something very flimsy; add a few folds and creases, and suddenly the strength appears. In the folds, the shape appears.”

The vibrant opening is attractive to the public who also finds a shelter underneath the ‘origami’ roof. When opened the inside of the sculptural rectangular box measures 2m deep and 3m wide, perfect for multitude of purposes; from serving coffee to information points to even a spot for DJs at events. The interiors lined with steel frames and a plywood-stressed skin can be customized by the vendors, depending where and when they are used. It is very comfortable to stand inside the rectangular ‘origami’ box, rain-skin cladding panels protects the changing vendor stories from insulation and reduced solar gain.

“Our solution on the modern street kiosk is a distinctive sculptural rectangular box that transforms when it opens and its function is revealed. The internal fit-out elements can be adapted to suit the needs of individual vendors”, says Affleck.

Aesthetically pleasing, the prefabricated pop-up stores are a great solution as urban furniture. When closed, the booths appear as futuristic sculptures, their matte grey exteriors evoking the steel and stone of the city, enhancing and revitalizing the public space.  The aesthetic form of the kiosks coupled with new activities and landscape would be able to provide a new urban platform for both tourists and locals alike.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of metals such as aluminum, widely used in the fabrication of prefabricated ‘origami’ pop-up stores. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. Our English speaking personnel will be more than pleased to help you. Follow us on  LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code.

Source and Photo credit: sddretail.co.uk, sklim.com, blog.archpaper.com, alucobondusa.com, archiloci.com, bestpaperz.com

Camilla G.//SMC Editor

Read more articles by this author here.

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