Action FiguresVideo GamesBikes & Ride-onsElectronicsBuilding SetsLearningGames & PuzzlesOutdoor PlayVehicles, Hobby & R/CPretend PlayArts & CraftsPreschoolMusical InstrumentsStuffed AnimalsCooking for Kids Hot WheelsMinecraftLEGOStar WarsTransformersTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles we got what's hot! Why Lego Is Changing This Controversial PolicyLego announced Wednesday it's reversing a conversational policy it had in place.Previously, the company asked customers buying its toy bricks in bulk what they were using them for, although that will no longer be the case, the BBC reported.The reason for the change has to do with Chinese artist and political dissident, Ai Weiwei, who accused Lego of censorship in October when the company wouldn't sell bricks to him for an art project. He ultimately ended up using fake bricks and made Lego's refusal public.But the company said Wednesday it didn't want to implement guidelines that "could result in misunderstandings or be perceived as inconsistent," according to a statement published on its website.
The statement continues, "As of January 1st, the LEGO Group no longer asks for the thematic purpose when selling large quantities of LEGO bricks for projects. Instead, the customers will be asked to make it clear—if they intend to display their LEGO creations in public—that the LEGO Group does not support or endorse the specific projects.""I think Lego made a good move, I think this would be a small victory for freedom of speech," said the artist to the BBC after the announcement.In October, Ai began receiving Lego donations after his request was denied.Chinese artist says toy company told him it ‘cannot approve the use of Legos for political works’ ahead of exhibition at National Gallery of Victoria The latest bulk order by Ai Weiwei would have been used to create an artwork to be shown at the National Gallery of Victoria in Australia later this year. Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei says Danish toymaker Lego has refused his studio’s request for a bulk order of the plastic toys on political grounds.
In an Instagram post on Friday evening, the artist said Lego had refused the bulk order in September, quoting the company as saying it “cannot approve the use of Legos for political works”. The artist’s accusation follows news this week that British firm Merlin Entertainments will open a Legoland park in Shanghai in conjunction with a Chinese partner. That announcement, timed to coincide with Chinese president Xi Jinping’s state visit to the UK, seems to have prompted the artist’s Instagram post. The latest bulk order by the artist would have been used to create an artwork to be shown at the National Gallery of Victoria in Australia later this year. It is not the first time the toymaker has met with political controversy. Earlier this year, the company refused journalist Maia Weinstock’s submission to its “Lego Ideas” platform of a custom set which celebrated the female justices of the US supreme court. But despite that case, there seems to be no precedent for the company to refuse a bulk order on political grounds.
Lego did not return a request for comment. An earlier major exhibition of Ai Weiwei’s work, held inside Alcatraz island penitentiary in the San Francisco bay, featured works made out of the plastic construction toys. Ai Weiwei’s lego artwork exhibition held inside Alcatraz island penitentiary The piece, titled Trace, showed pixelated images of more than 175 prisoners of conscience including Nelson Mandela, Edward Snowden and Nobel prize-winning Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. The Danish toymaker is expanding its presence in China as growth in the US – its biggest market – has slowed. In September, the company reported that Asia provided the highest regional growth rate. The company has also invested a “three-digit million euro figure” into a new manufacturing facility in Jiaxing, to help keep up with the regional demand. A sequel to the 2014 hit The Lego Movie as well as spin-off films are scheduled for release in 2017, but it is not clear if they will be released in mainland China.
The Lego Movie was not released to cinemas on the Chinese mainland but did prove popular in Hong Kong where it took the No 1 spot on its opening weekend. The film featured Lego characters attempting to undermine the villainous Lord Business and was praised by critics as an intelligent satirical take on conformity and corporate control. We just need a few more details to give you the best answer possible. If you're helping a child, please make sure you select your own age.We only sell individual bricks in the countries on this list.You're not old enough. Maybe you can call us with one of your parents instead? How old are you? Where do you live?Lego has said it is reversing its policy on bulk purchases and will no longer ask customers what they want to use the bricks for.The U-turn follows a recent controversy involving Chinese artist Ai Weiwei.In October last year, Ai accused Lego of censorship when it refused to sell its bricks directly to him.The company said its policy was to reject requests if it believed the bricks would be used to make a political statement.
Ai is known for his criticism of the Chinese government as well as for being one of the world's leading contemporary artists. He wanted the bricks for an artwork on political dissidents. The artist ended up using "fake" bricks donated to him by the public for an exhibition in Melbourne, Australia.Ai appeared to react to Lego's decision on Wednesday by posting a picture on Instagram of a young boy sticking bricks onto his face, accompanied by a grinning emoji caption. When Lego first refused to sell a bulk order of plastic bricks to Ai Weiwei in September, he's thought to have kept the news to himself. But a few weeks later, the announcement that a new Legoland theme park would open in Shanghai led the artist to reveal Lego's decision to stay away from projects that had a "political agenda". It was a surprising decision by Lego. After all, Ai Weiwei had used Lego before. He created a series of portraits of political dissidents that appeared at an exhibition in Alcatraz prison in 2014.
Back in October, the artist tied Lego's financial interests in China with its decision to refuse his order. His accusation has some merit: KIRKBI, the private Danish company that owns the Lego brand also owns a significant amount of shares in Merlin Entertainment, the British company that operates Legolands around the world.China is Lego's fastest growing market and the company wouldn't want to irritate Beijing. However, as Lego might attest, few would want to battle the feisty Ai Weiwei. In a statement posted on its website on Tuesday, Lego said it used to ask customers ordering bulk purchases for the "thematic purpose" of their project, as it did not want to "actively support or endorse specific agendas"."However, those guidelines could result in misunderstandings or be perceived as inconsistent, and the Lego Group has therefore adjusted the guidelines for sales of Lego bricks in very large quantities," it said.As of 1 January the company will instead ask that customers make clear the group does not support or endorse their projects, if exhibited in public.