Ai Weiwei

Table of Contents

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images

Ai Weiwei: Sunflower Seeds

Ai Weiwei: Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads

Ai Weiwei: installation at the Konzerthaus Berlin

Read Next

Night view of the Opera House and new business quarter, Oslo, Norway.

These 8 Buildings Will Make You See Norway in a New Light

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's House, Weimar,Germany; photocrom print published between 1890-1900.

5 Historically Significant Houses in Germany

The New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City, designed by the Japanese architecture firm SANAA (Sejima and Nishizawa and Associates) and opened in 2007. Attached to the facade is Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone's sculpture installation Hell, Yes! (2001)

Woman-Made: 13 Architects You Might Not Know

Florence Baptistery of Saint John, Italy

9 Historic Buildings in Florence

Sculpture of woman before restoration (left) and after restoration on the exterior of an office building in Palencia, Spain. (art restoration)

5 Art Restorations Gone Wrong

Discover

Close up of periodic table, focus on nickel, copper, zinc, palladium, silver, cadmium

When Was the Periodic Table Invented?

A mug shot taken by the regional Colombia control agency in Medellin

Pablo Escobar: 8 Interesting Facts About the King of Cocaine

Hindu Holi Festival celebrations with colored water, powder and colorful flower petals thrown over celebrants at a Hindu temple in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India on March 24, 2021.

Holi: Festival of Colors

Calendar marking march 15th

22 Questions About Time and Timekeeping Answered

Young boys working in a thread spinning mill in Macon, Georgia, 1909. Boys are so small they have to climb onto the spinning frame to reach and fix broken threads and put back empty bobbins. Child labor. Industrial revolution

The Rise of the Machines: Pros and Cons of the Industrial Revolution

Statue of Liberty in front of the skyline of Manhattan, New York City, New York.

Who Was the Woman Behind the Statue of Liberty?

Bar graph of the United States Death Toll during major events. Infogram chart.

U.S. Death Toll During Major Events

Ai Weiwei: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

News •

Dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei denied entry into Switzerland • Feb. 11, 2025, 9:13 PM ET (Straits Times)

Facts

Also Known As	Ai Wei-wei
Born	May 18, 1957? • Beijing • China
Awards And Honors	Praemium Imperiale (2022)
Notable Works	“Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads” • “Fairytale” • “Remembering” • “Sunflower Seeds”
Notable Family Members	father Ai Qing

Photos

Ai Weiwei: Sunflower Seeds

Ai Weiwei: Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads

Ai Weiwei: installation at the Konzerthaus Berlin

See All Images →

Christo

Bulgarian artist

Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Kusama

Japanese artist

Zhang Huan

Chinese artist

I.M. Pei

I.M. Pei

American architect

Cai Guo-Qiang

Chinese artist

Leonardo da Vinci: self-portrait

Leonardo da Vinci

Italian artist, engineer, and scientist

Michelangelo

Michelangelo

Italian artist

Lorenzo Bernini: Apollo and Daphne

Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Italian artist

Mickalene Thomas

Mickalene Thomas

American mixed-media artist

Edward James Olmos

Edward James Olmos

American actor and social activist

Lee Ufan

Lee Ufan

Korean artist, critic, philosopher, and poet

Banksy: Girl with Balloon

Banksy

British graffiti artist

Smith, Tony: Throwback (1/3)

Tony Smith

American architect, sculptor, and painter

Maurizio Cattelan: Mini-Me

Maurizio Cattelan

Italian artist

Maya Lin

Maya Lin

American sculptor and architect

Tracey Emin

Tracey Emin

British artist

Bacchus

Jacopo Sansovino

Italian sculptor

Robert Smithson

American sculptor and writer

Robert Irwin: Getty Center's Central Garden

Robert Irwin

American painter and sculptor

$Robert Gober: Untitled$

Robert Gober

American artist

Quiz

Hagia Sophia. Istanbul, Turkey. Constantinople. Church of the Holy Wisdom. Church of the Divine Wisdom. Mosque.

Architecture: The Built World