“Since 1995 Ai Weiwei has raised his middle finger to bastions of power”

March 17, 2023 10:16 AM

Do you want Ai Weiwei to flip the bird at major landmarks, or anywhere else that’s findable on Google Maps? Here is his middle finger extended at the Kremlin. At the Leaning Tower of Pisa. At Mar-a-Lago. At Hallgrímskirkja in Reykjavík. At some guy on the South Pole. At a statue of a moomintroll in Tampere, Finland. Try it yourself and then read about the project here.
posted by Kattullus (7 comments total)

This is cool but can it be done with Google image search? I'd rather flip his bird at various sentient individuals, all of whom deserve it more than any building.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:18 AM on March 17

It's ability to get an image based on location, even one that pops up in the list as you enter it, is very hit or miss. The image shown has little or nothing to do with what you were seeking. But when it gets it more or less right, it's still funny.
posted by njohnson23 at 10:44 AM on March 17 [1 favorite]

Oh, that's not the Kremlin, it's St Basil's Cathedral, near the Kremlin.
posted by njohnson23 at 10:56 AM on March 17 [1 favorite]

Moomintrolls are bastions of power?
posted by dlugoczaj at 1:49 PM on March 17 [2 favorites]

This one goes out to a good friend.
posted by not_on_display at 2:53 PM on March 17 [1 favorite]

I never travel but went to Chicago last year and made my wife take a picture of me giving Trump Tower the finger with both hands. I treasure it. It was also right after a very nice looking family took and unironic group selfie in front of it.
posted by caviar2d2 at 3:24 PM on March 17 [1 favorite]

dlugozaj: Moomintrolls are bastions of power?

I’ll admit I just idly wondered what would come up if I typed in moomintroll… not my finest moment as a human being.
posted by Kattullus at 3:50 PM on March 17 [3 favorites]