Ralph Ziman's Weapons of Mass Production

I had the opportunity earlier this year to go see an art exhibit in Seattle titled “The Mig-21 Project.” The center piece of this exhibit was a retired MiG-21, the most produced supersonic jet in history, covered in an intricate hand woven bead work [1]. 

Figure 1: Beaded MiG–21 [1].

I was amazed by the amount of intricate detail that was put into the brightly covered beads on this aircraft. What was even more impressive to me, though, was the incredible and thoughtful design that went into making this an impactful project.

The MiG-21 was the third installment in a three part series of projects by Ralph Ziman called “Weapons of Mass Production.” The first project was an AK47 beaded sculptures and the second was a Casspir vehicle covered in beads similarly to the MiG-21 [2].

Figure 2: Beaded Casspir Vehicle with Ralph Ziman inside [2].

These projects involved creating art installations from mass produced weapons that have impacted the lives of people around the world and particularly in Africa. This theme was influenced by the leader of this project Ralph Ziman’s experience growing up in Apartheid South Africa [2]. To create these masterpieces, he salvaged old war vehicles and military equipment and began the process of covering each piece in intricate beading and designs based off of African culture and history.

What really struck me was how wide a variety of purposes this project served for people. For example, the Casspir Vehicle was used to and became a symbol of oppression in South Africa during the Apartheid, this led to the project being a way to help people confront the trauma caused by and linked to the Casspir [3]. It also served to educate people such as me who visit these art installations on the nature of how these weapons have impacted people’s lives.

The installation at the museum of flight showed colorful sculptures of AK47s and described how it is a weapon that is a symbol of liberation for some and oppression for others [1]. I had never really thought about how the same weapon could serve such sharply contrasting roles. This led me to consider how my work as a mechanical engineer can significantly impact people’s lives.

Another more immediate impact of Ralph Ziman’s multi-year Weapons of Mass Production project was how he employed a large number of people in Africa who were provided with steady well-paying jobs by performing the intricate beadwork necessary to create these incredible beaded sculptures.

Figure 3: Beaded sculpture of AK47 [2].

I was initially drawn to this project as a result of the careful planning that went into covering a MiG-21 Supersonic Jet in colorful handwoven beads. But I was far more amazed by how this project that was years in the making was designed to have a wide reaching impact on people to both educate on the impact of these weapons, help people who were oppressed by these weapons, and provide people with good employment through the process of creating the artwork. I encourage you to consider how you can design with the goal of having a wide reaching impact like Ralph Ziman did with his Weapons of Mass Production Project. Also, I recommend visiting his website to learn more about the work he has done and the impact of his work that couldn’t be conveyed in this article.

References

[1] “The MiG-21 Project.” The Museum of Flight, 2026, www.museumofflight.org/exhibits-and-events/exhibits/mig-21-project.

[2] Ziman, Ralph. Ralph Ziman, 2026, ralphziman.com/.

[3] Ziman, Ralph. “The Casspir Project Documentary | By Ralph Ziman.” YouTube, 8 Oct. 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjCmKJQhaMw.

To cite this article:
Smith, Eli. “Ralph Ziman's Weapons of Mass Production.” The BYU Design Review, 25 March 2026, https://www.designreview.byu.edu/collections/ralph-zimans-weapons-of-mass-production.