Ai Weiwei vase worth $1m broken in local artist protest

BBC ^ | 2/18/14

[SoFloFreeper]

...A Florida artist is facing criminal charges after deliberately dropping a vase by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei in an apparent protest.

Maximo Caminero, 51, was charged with criminal mischief after breaking the $1m (£600,000) vase on Sunday in Miami.

Police say Mr Caminero told them he broke the art work in protest at the Perez Art Museum Miami's failure to exhibit work by local artists.

Mr Ai said he did not support artists destroying other artists' work.

[SoFloFreeper]

The local Miami media is AGHAST that someone would DESTROY private property....an attitude it DOES NOT display when the Occupy morons break windows of businesses or when Obama takes the liberty of religious people or taxpayers.

[cripplecreek]

Mr Ai said he did not support artists destroying other artists' work.

Nope, just him. I say we should drop him off a building and see if he breaks. (Not that I support dropping idiots off buildings)

[JoeProBono]

[Tax-chick]

How do we know this vase was worth $1 million? Who paid that amount for it?

[MortMan]

Mr. Ai is the artist whose vase was broken, not the vase breaker.

[ltc8k6]

Was Maximo upset that Mexican art was not displayed?

[Heart of Georgia]

“local artists”

In some places this would clearly mean homosexual “artists.”

[logic101.net]

failure to exhibit work by local artists.

Hmmmm, maybe if he was a better artist....

Besides there are venues for “local artists” to display things, they don’t need to have access to every place that displays art.

More importantly though, what kind of idiots leave a $1m vase out where it can be broken?

[Tax-chick]

I think Maximo was upset that HIS art wasn’t on display. Nonetheless, Mr. Ai is a vase-smasher himself, to make a point, so he set the example.

The article doesn’t say how the value was established, but I’m guessing it wasn’t the free-market sale price.

[Heart of Georgia]

“Who paid that amount for it?”

Possibly insured for that amount. This may end up being an insurance scam.

[Fresh Wind]

Worth $1 million? I'm thinking more like $24.99

[Ann Archy]

Maximo was the criminal...Ai is the artist.

[demshateGod]

Ai Weiwei is a truly brave artist not a spoiled brat like this Maximo. That he would do this in protest speaks volumes about the fruits of a permissive, entitled society.

[Tax-chick]

Good point.

[bert]

Local potters are a dime a gross. Although artists and local, if you start displaying their work, there is no end. The Museum will die

[Red Badger]

Mr Ai is the artist who made the vase..............Maximo Caminero is the one who broke it.................

[DManA]

That was a priceless Wee-Wee vase!!

Nit eeney meour.

[Red Badger]

Hey I saw those for $19.99!...............

[hal ogen]

$24.99 for the group, I hope.

[Red Badger]

It was priceless. Now it’s worthless..........I suppose he could glue all the pieces back together and it would be worth $2 million because it’s now a ‘historical object’.....................A ‘win-win’ for Wei-Wei.................