Middle Finger in Red
A silkscreen rendition of Ai Weiwei’s emblematic gesture of defiance. The radial composition – created specially for the edition and printed in two layers – references the raised middle finger which defines Ai’s seminal series, Study of Perspective.
Begun in 1995, the series asserts the importance of our collective freedom to form, hold and express individual beliefs. For almost 20 years Ai has reprised Study of Perspective at sites of power worldwide, prompting a tide of recreations by members of the public. To him, the power of a simple gesture is that anyone can make it.