Ai Weiwei/Instagram

Lego has said it will reverse its bulk-buying policies after a backlash inspired by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei.

Ai had accused Lego of "censorship and discrimination" after the company refused to sell bricks to him for a 2015 exhibition. Lego had previously said that it "respects any individual's right to free, creative expression' but that it would not sell bricks to anyone making a political statement.


In a post shared on Instagram at the time, which showed Lego bricks in the bowl of a toilet, Ai wrote that "Lego is an influential cultural and political actor in the globalised economy with questionable values". "Lego's refusal to sell its product to the artist is an act of censorship and discrimination".

Lego have now announced that they will be reversing its bulk buying policy, announcing in a statement that its previous guidelines "could result in misunderstandings or be perceived as inconsistent". "The Lego Group has therefore adjusted the guidelines for sales of Lego bricks in very large quantities," it said.

Although customers will be able to bulk-buy Lego, they will have to make clear that the group does not support or endorse exhibited projects.

Ai is best known for his criticisms of the Chinese government, and his work deals with democracy, freedom, surveillance and more. His most recent exhibition, at the Royal Academy in London, examined themes of "creative freedom, censorship and human rights...as well as examining contemporary Chinese art and society".

He responded to Lego's u-turn with another post on his Instagram page -- this time with his beard full of Lego bricks and a smiling emoji caption.