Born in Beijing in 1957, Ai Weiwei is one of China's leading contemporary art figures, with a practice that spans art-making, curating, architectural design, and publishing. The son of famed poet Ai Qing, Ai studied at the prestigious Beijing Film Academy, only to drop out one year later and become a founding member of the artist collaborative known as the Stars Group. … (read more)

Born in Beijing in 1957, Ai Weiwei is one of China's leading contemporary art figures, with a practice that spans art-making, curating, architectural design, and publishing. The son of famed poet Ai Qing, Ai studied at the prestigious Beijing Film Academy, only to drop out one year later and become a founding member of the artist collaborative known as the Stars Group.

The self-proclaimed "most interviewed artist in China," has become an international celebrity known for questioning authority--not a uncomplicated act in China--and challenging tradition. His reputation as a provocateur and rebel is supported by such unconventional works as Fairytale (2007), for which he shipped 1,001 Chinese tourists to a small town in Germany for an international art fair. He has also photographed himself smashing a 2,000-year-old Han Dynasty urn and flicking off the White House.

Ai's interest in design and architecture lead him to create his architectural firm, Fake Design, and culminated in his collaboration with Herzog & de Meron on the 2008 Chinese Olympic Stadium also known as "the Bird’s Nest."

Click here to read more about Weiwei's architectural design for the Olympic National Stadium in China from CNN.com

Click here to read about Weiwei's outdoor installations for Art Basel Miami Beach 2008 Art Fair from Artforum Magazine

Watch an interview with the artist via Bloomberg News:

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