Ai Weiwei has been busy this summer. Besides joining the Stockholm Film Festival jury, and setting up an installation of 1,000 tents in Germany, the outspoken Chinese artist has just released a set of awesome skateboard decks for The Sk8room.
The graphics pull from Ai Weiwei's installation Sunflower Seeds, which opened in London at the Tate Modern in 2010, and He Xie, a group of ceramic crabs installed at D.C.'s Hirshhorn Museum two years ago, as well as a still from his film Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry. The decks are also covered in messages we would expect from the dissident artist, who is in constant battle against Chinese authorities. One board reads, "The world is not changing if you don't shoulder the burden of responsibility." Another is emblazoned with the quote, "Maybe being powerful means to be fragile." And on the third appears, "There are no outdoor sports as graceful as throwing stones at a dictatorship in the world."
This is not the first time The Sk8room has teamed up with artists. In the past, they have produced boards with the likes of Damien Hirst and Banksy. Proceeds from Ai Weiwei x The Sk8room will go to Skateistan, a non-profit NGO that supports youth through skateboarding and educational activities.
Ai Weiwei's boards are currently on view at The Sk8room gallery shop in Brussels. You can purchase the decks for €300 here.
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[via Designboom]
