LEGO Admits It Was a ‘Mistake’ Refusing Ai Weiwei Bricks

The decision to reject Chinese artist Ai Weiwei’s request for a bulk order of its bricks last year was a “mistake”, the  company have said today. Vice-Chairman Kirk Kristiansen told The Wall Street Journal that had been made “very low in the organisation by our consumer service department”, and that board had not been involved at the time.

Mr Kirk Kristiansen’s son and successor Thomas added: “It is a typical example of what can go wrong in a big company.” The companies’s refusal to provide bricks for Ai’s artwork on political dissidents prompted people around the world to donate bricks at “LEGO collection points” set up in different cities.

In January, LEGO decided to stop asking bulk customers what they wanted to do with the bricks. It said such customers should instead make clear that the company does not endorse works shown in public.