Lego changes course on use of its bricks
2018-11-30

Photo by Ai Weiwei/Instagram The artist Ai Weiwei with Legos from his Instagram account.

Toymaker Lego has decided it will no longer try to judge the merits of how its plastic blocks are used in controversial projects, after getting caught in a free speech debate for refusing to supply the bricks to dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei.

Last year, Lego refused an order from Ai, after the artist reportedly planned to use them in an upcoming exhibit in Australia on free expression. In 2014, Ai built an exhibit featuring Lego brick portraits of dissidents from around the world.

But now the Danish toymaker said it has changed its policy and will stop asking customers what they intend to do with the toys when it gets similar requests.

The firm said: “As of 1 January, the Lego Group no longer asks for the thematic purpose when selling large quantities of Lego bricks for projects,” the company said.

“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.”

Lego, which suggested its original decision was about staying out of politics generally, has increasing commercial interests in China.

The company opened a factory in China last year, its first in the country and its first in Asia, in part to tap growing local markets there.

When that $470m (€431m) facility is fully operational in 2017, the company said it will have several hundred moulding machines and supply the vast majority of its products for Asian markets.

A Legoland theme park is also planned for Shanghai, following an announcement by UK-based park operator Merlin Entertainment and Shanghai-based China Media Capital in October 2015.