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Wednesday, 28 January 2015 10:52

Phillips Will Offer Ai Weiwei’s "Zodiac Heads" at Upcoming Contemporary Art Auction

Ai Weiwei's Zodiac Animals at New York's Plaza Hotel. Ai Weiwei's Zodiac Animals at New York's Plaza Hotel. Flickr

The Contemporary Art Evening auction at Phillips on February 12 features works by many art world heavyweights including Andy Warhol, Allen Jones, Julian Schnabel, and Antony Gormley, but the star that is likely to steal the show is undoubtedly Ai Weiwei's sculpture "Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads." This group of 12 gold-plated sculptures, portraying the signs of the Chinese zodiac, is offered as Lot 8 with a pre-sale estimate of £2-£3m.

Created in 2010 the zodiac heads are inspired by those which once comprised a water clock-fountain at the Old Summer Palace, the complex of palaces and gardens in Beijing built between 1750 and 1764 by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing dynasty.

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