Since 1993, Beijing-based Ai Weiwei has created a cohesive body of work in the various guises of artist, architect, curator, writer and critic. This overview, an in-depth reflection on the artist's most vibrant and celebrated projects, features works from 2004-2007--including installation projects, objects and videos. Focusing on thematic topics, materials and media, it includes screenshots from Ai's influential blog, as well as a discussion of his infamous social sculpture "Fairytale," which debuted at 2007's Documenta 12, inviting 1,001 Chinese citizens to participate in hopes of finding, "a way to bring China's current social condition to Kassel and thus allow Westerners to view a sample of modern Chinese society." Ai's most recent wood and porcelain series is also featured here, positing a new understanding of traditional Chinese forms, aesthetics and production. This publication includes texts by Charles Merewether, Peter Pakesch and Philip Tinari.
The son of the famous Chinese poet Ai Qing, Ai Weiwei was born in 1957 in Beijing. He collaborated with the Swiss architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron on the design for the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Summer Olympics.