Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Ai Weiwei


 Ai Weiwei from the series

Born in Beijing, his father was the famous Chinese poet Ai Qing, who was denounced during the Cultural Revolution and sent off to a labor camp in Xinjiang with his wife, Gao Ying.[3] Ai Weiwei also spent five years there.[2] Ai Weiwei is married to artist Lu Qing.[3]

In 1978, Ai enrolled in the Beijing Film Academy and attended school with famous Chinese directors Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou.[4] In 1978, he was one of the founders of the early avant garde art group the "Stars," and the group subsequently disbanded in 1983.[5]

From 1981 to 1993, he lived in the United States, mostly in New York, doing performance art and creating conceptual art by altering readymade objects.[5] While in New York, he studied at Parsons School of Design.[6]

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