Ai Weiwei
Date of birth: 1957-08-28
Place of birth: Beijing, China
Known for: Directing
Also known as: Ài Wèiwèi, Weiwei Ai, Ai Wei-wei
Biography
Ai Weiwei is a Chinese contemporary artist and activist. Ai grew up in the far north-west of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been openly critical of the Chinese Government's stance on democracy and human rights. He investigated government corruption and cover-ups, in particular the Sichuan schools corruption scandal following the collapse of schools in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. In 2011, Ai Weiwei was arrested at Beijing Capital International Airport on 3 April, for allegedly economic crimes. He was detained for 81 days without charge. Ai Weiwei emerged as a vital instigator in Chinese cultural development, an architect of Chinese modernism, and one of the nation's most vocal political commentators. Ai Weiwei encapsulates political conviction and his personal poetry in his many sculptures, photographs and public works. In doing this, he makes use of Chinese art forms to display the Chinese political and social issues. After being allowed to leave China in 2015, he has lived in Berlin, Germany, and, since 2019, in Cambridge, UK, with his family, working and traveling internationally.
Movie Credits
Ithaka
2022-04-21
The campaign to free Julian Assange takes on intimate dimensions in this documentary portrait of an
Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry
2012-06-14
An account of the many tribulations that Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, known for his subversive art and
Disturbing the Peace
2009-12-31
"Disturbing the Peace" is a documentary of an incident during Tan Zuoren's trial on August 12, 2009.
Ai Weiwei Drifting
2017-06-13
Ai Weiwei is a global star and an enigma. DW followed him for a year for this intimate portrait. The
Eric Ravilious: Drawn to War
2022-07-01
One of Britain’s greatest landscape artists, Eric Ravilious, is killed in a plane crash while on com
Ai Weiwei's Appeal ¥15,220,910.50
2014-01-23
Ai Weiwei’s Appeal ¥15,220,910.50 opens with Ai Weiwei’s mother at the Venice Biennial in the summer
Clockwork Orange: The Prophecy
2023-11-08
Examines and re-evaluates the 60-year history and cultural impact of A Clockwork Orange, as a novel,
Vincent van Gogh Superstar
2019-11-05
Documentary about famous painter Vincent van Gogh.
The Sand Storm
2014-08-30
In the not-quite end-times, a woman, a man, a lover and a water smuggler navigate a tumultuous futur
Ai Weiwei: The Fake Case
2013-11-30
After 81 days of solitary detention world famous Chinese artist Ai Weiwei is put under house arrest.
Ai Weiwei: Without Fear or Favour
2010-11-16
Arts documentary, first broadcast before Ai Weiwei's arrest by the Chinese authorities in April 2011
Free to Create - Artists in Exile
2024-02-13
Artists forced to leave their country talk about the ambivalence of exile. With Iranian actress Gols
Flowers of Taipei: Taiwan New Cinema
2014-10-01
With Taiwan remaining in the grip of martial law in 1982, a group of filmmakers from that country se
The Chinese Lives of Uli Sigg
2017-08-03
Swiss collector Uli Sigg has played in the time of economic opening of China by Mao an essential rol
Hormone
2011-04-22
Ai Weiwei - Evidence
2014-09-01
Documentary about artist Ai Weiwei's 2014 exhibition in Berlin.
KUN 13: Criticizing Ai Weiwei and Wu Haohao
2012-08-21
An uncomfortable encounter between the filmmaker and the famed artist.
Why Are We Creative?
2018-09-07
A 30 years odyssey: the world's most intriguing artists and thinkers from the fields of visual art,
Propaganda: The Art of Selling Lies
2019-04-28
From ancient cave paintings to Twitter feeds and deep fakes, propaganda's rapid progression hasn't c
The Rest
2019-03-22
Europe's refugees are met at eye level in a film by the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who defends the id
Ai Weiwei en Buenos Aires
2018-01-15
The documentary registers with detail this first visit to Argentina. It's a meditation on the artist
Ai Weiwei: Yours Truly
2019-04-14
Ai Weiwei, famous for his large-scale installation work and his dogged social justice advocacy, crea
Little Girl's Cheeks
2009-12-31
On December 15, 2008, a citizens' investigation began with the goal of seeking an explanation for th
Eat, Drink and Be Merry
2003-07-01
In 2003, the infectious disease SARS quickly spread across China, causing widespread panic. At the p
Ai Weiwei: Sunflower Seeds
2010-10-14
Art is a tool to set up new questions. An interview with Ai Weiwei about the work behind is installa
Ai Weiwei's Turandot
2025-10-16
There's a first time for everything, and thus Chinese multi-disciplinary artist Ai Weiwei set out to
The Trainer
2024-10-20
Jack Flex is broke, buff, and wildly delusional—but he’s got a dream: to sell his absurd invention,