Ai Weiwei, Wade-Giles romanization Ai Wei-wei (born May 18, 1957, Beijing, China), Chinese artist and activist who produced a multifaceted array of creative work, including sculptural installations, architectural projects, photographs, and videos. While Ai was lauded internationally, the frequently provocative and subversive dimension of his art, as well as his political outspokenness, triggered various forms of repression from Chinese authorities.
Ai Weiwei’s father was Ai Qing, one of China’s most renowned poets. Shortly after Weiwei was born, communist officials accused Ai Qing of being a rightist, and the family was exiled to remote locales—first to the northeastern province of Heilongjiang and then to the northwestern autonomous region
