Ai Weiwei Is Selling Artful Face Masks to Raise Funds for Covid-19 Relief Efforts

ARTNEWS
By Claire Selvin

Masks designed by Ai Weiwe: Single masks cost $50, a series of four is valued at $300, and a collection of 20 is priced at $1,500. COURTESY AI WEIWEI STUDIO

Ai Weiwei, never one to shy away from getting involved in an activist cause, has turned his efforts toward supporting pandemic-related relief. In a new initiative launched as a collaboration with eBay, the artist and activist is selling limited-edition protective masks created in his studio in Berlin. All proceeds from the sales will go to Human Rights Watch, Refugees International, and Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders. The mask artworks became available on Thursday and sales will continue through June 27. The cloth masks in the sale feature silk-screened images designed by Ai, including a middle finger, sunflower seeds, and feishu, a creature in Chinese mythology. [More]

The artist said in a statement, “The Covid-19 pandemic is a humanitarian crisis. It challenges our understanding of the 21st century and warns of dangers ahead. It requires each individual to act, both alone and collectively.”