Ai Weiwei was born in northwest China but was sent to a labor camp in Beidahuang, Heilongjiang, when he was only a year old. There he was raised for the early years of his life. His father Aì Qīng’s involvement in the Anti-Rightist Movement led to the family's exile shortly afterward to Shihezi, Xinjiang, where Ai spent the duration of his childhood. Upon Mao Zedong’s death, the family returned to Beijing in 1976.
Following the family’s return home, Ai enrolled in the Beijing Film Academy to study animation in 1978. He was one of the founders of the avant-garde art group the Stars alongside contemporaries Ma Desheng, Wang Keping, Mao Lizi, Huang Rui, Li Shuang, Ah Cheng and Qu Leilei. The Stars disbanded in the 1980s, but Ai participated in regular shows that recalled the ten years that the group had been together, including at the Hanart Gallery in 1989 and the retrospective 2007 exhibition at Beijing's Origin Point.
Ai moved to the USA in 1981, among the earliest of students to study abroad following China’s reform in 1980, which afforded him the opportunity to take the TOEFL in 1981. He lived in Philadelphia and then in San Francisco, studying English at the University of California, Berkeley. Afteward, Ai studied at Parsons School of Design in New York City and attended the Art Students League of New York from 1983 to 1986. He initially made a living by drawing street portraits.
Immersing himself in the Pop art scene, which was rapidly gaining popularity, Ai began creating conceptual art and photography. Ai returned to China after his father became ill in 1993, and while there he helped to establish the experimental art scene called Beijing East Village. In 1999, Ai built a studio house in Beijing — his first architectural project. Ai founded the architecture studio FAKE Design in 2003, and co-curated the art exhibition "Fuck Off" with Feng Boyi in Shanghai.
In 2011, Ai was arrested and jailed. Released after 81 days, the government confiscated his passport. His release was in part due to the uproar of the art world against his charges of tax evasion; the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the International Council of Museums both organized petitions, collecting almost 100,000 signatures calling for his release. When he reclaimed his passport in 2015, Ai moved to Berlin and lived in a studio. It became a base for him to create his international work.
Ai is the artistic director of China Art Archives & Warehouse. The experimental gallery and archive, co-founded by Ai in 1997, concentrates on experimental art from the People’s Republic of China, initiating and facilitating exhibitions both in China and internationally.
Ai's work is in the collections of museums worldwide, including the Tate, London; Arken, London; Brooklyn Museum, New York; and the RA, London. His international architectural collaborations, including the Beijing National Stadium and the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, have consistently been met with critical acclaim.
Find a variety of authentic Ai Weiwei prints, paintings and other art today on 1stDibs.
Ai Weiwei - Cats (Black)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Screen print on Saunders Waterford 300gsm paper Hand-signed, dated, and numbered by the artist 28 × 32.8 cm Edition of 150 Framed The print was editioned by master printer, Kip Gres...
Screen
$2,800
Ai Weiwei - Cedar - Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique 280gsm paper Signed/N
By Ai Weiwei
Located in New York, NY
Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique 280gsm paper Pencil signed and numbered 112/150 Printed at The Print Studio, Cambridge This work has been elegantly framed in a wood frame unde...
Screen
Ai Weiwei - Cats (Red)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Screen print on Saunders Waterford 300gsm paper Hand-signed, dated, and numbered by the artist 28 × 32.8 cm Edition of 150 Framed The print was editioned by master printer, Kip Gres...
Screen
$2,294
Guardian
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Guardian, 2024 60 x 60 cm edition of 1601 hand-signed and numbered by the artist Understanding the print... see image 4. 01 · Sunflower seeds Used in ceramic form by Weiwei for his ...
Glitter, Screen
$2,500
Ai Weiwei - Cats (Red), original silkscreen, hand signed 116/150, Chinese Framed
By Ai Weiwei
Located in New York, NY
Ai Weiwei Cats (Red), 2022 Screen print on Saunders Waterford 300gsm paper Hand signed, dated, and numbered 87/150 by Ai Weiwei on the front 13 1/2 × 17 inches Unframed This print wa...
Pencil, Screen
Middle Finger in Red
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Artist: Ai Weiwei Title: Middle Finger in Red Year: 2023 Medium: 2 colour silkscreen print on 410gsm Somerset Tub Sized Satin White paper Edition: 1285; signed in pencil Sheet: ...
Screen
Ai Weiwei – Odyssey (Offset Lithograph, 2017)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Draper, UT
Ai Weiwei – Odyssey (Offset Lithograph, 2017) In 2017, amidst mounting global anxieties about migration and national divides, Ai Weiwei launched Good Fences Make Good Neighbors, a s...
Paper
Ai Weiwei, Zodiac - Signed Print and Limited Edition Book
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Hamburg, DE
Ai Weiwei (Chinese, b. 1957) Zodiac, 2024 Medium: Digital print, gold foil stamped, on paper (incl. artist's book and slipcase) Dimensions: 6 × 8 1/2 in 15.2 × 21.6 cm Edition of 10...
Digital
River Crabs (from Papercut Portfolio)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Calabasas, CA
Artist: Ai Weiwei Title: River Crabs (from Papercut Portfolio) Year: 2019 Medium: Papercut on large format, colored fine art paper Edition: 250; sig...
Lithograph
Ai Weiwei, Cats (Silver) - Signed Print
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Hamburg, DE
Ai Weiwei (Chinese, b. 1957) Cats (Silver), 2024 Medium: Silver foil block on wove paper Dimensions: 27.2 x 32.8 cm (10 7/10 × 12 9/10 in) Edition of 200: Hand-signed, numbered and d...
Foil
Ai Weiwei, Cats (Black) - Signed Print, Contemporary Art, Chinese Activist
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Hamburg, DE
Ai Weiwei (Chinese, b. 1957) Cats (Black), 2022 Medium: Screenprint on paper Sheet dimensions: 28 x 32.8 cm Frame dimensions: 36.1 x 41.2 cm Edition of 150: Hand-signed, numbered and...
Screen
$1,591Sale Price|20% Off
Guardian, 2024 by Ai Weiwei, Silkscreen, Chinese, Symbolism, Contemporary Art
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Zug, CH
Ai Weiwei Guardian 2024 2 colour silkscreen with a metallic glitter base layer, printed on 410gsm Somerset Tub Sized Radiant White paper 59.94 × 59.94 cm (23.6 × 23.6 in) Signed and ...
Paper, Glitter
Cats (Pink)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Screen print on Saunders Waterford 300gsm paper Hand-signed, dated, and numbered by the artist 45 x 62 cm Edition of 300 + 3 PP The print was editioned by master printer, Kip Gresham at The Print Studio, Cambridge for Kettle's Yard. It was made using an original drawing ‘cut’ into an acrylic sheet. The image is then reversed when printed. Description from the publisher: "Drawing has been fundamental to Ai Weiwei’s artistic practice from an early age. He also has a longstanding love of cats, and they appear frequently in the artist’s social media posts. Many cats used to roam his studio in Beijing. As part of the Kettle’s Yard exhibition, Ai’s ‘Cats wallpaper...
Screen
Forest, 1977
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Ai Weiwei “Forest (1977)”, 2024 Limited edition offset lithograph print Edition of 200 Hand-signed by the artist Published by Damocle Edizioni, Venice, 2024 Each edition comes with...
Lithograph, Offset
Year of the Ox Screen Print, Hand Signed, Printer's Proof, 48x48
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Aventura, FL
22-color Screen print on paper. Hand signed lower front by Ai Weiwei. Hand numbered 'Printer's Proof 4' on verso (there is also a main edition of 58). Artwork size: 39.81 x 39.87 ...
Screen, Paper
First Edition 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows Signed Copy by Ai weiwei
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Draper, UT
n his widely anticipated memoir, "one of the most important artists working in the world today" ( Financial Times ) tells a century-long epic tale of China through the story of his o...
Archival Paper
Middle Finger in Red
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Calabasas, CA
Artist: Ai Weiwei Title: Middle Finger in Red Year: 2023 Medium: 2 colour silkscreen print on 410gsm Somerset Tub Sized Satin White paper Edition: 1285; signed in pencil Sheet: 23 3/...
Screen
Ai Weiwei, Bomb - Fine Art Inkjet Print, Hand-Signed
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Hamburg, DE
Ai Weiwei (Chinese, b. 1957) Bomb, 2020 Medium: Fine art inkjet print, Hahnemüle German etching 310g paper Dimensions: 95 x 130 cm (37 2/5 x 51 1/5 in) Edition of 100 + 25 AP: Hand-s...
Paper, Inkjet
Ai Weiwei, History of Bombs - Limited Edition Print, Contemporary Pop Art
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Hamburg, DE
Ai Weiwei (Chinese, b. 1957) History of Bombs, 2020 Medium: Digital print on 170gsm arco paper Dimensions: 19.7 x 27.6 in (50 x 70 cm) Edition of 1000: Printed signature on accompany...
Digital
Furniture, from The Papercut Portfolio
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Papercut, 2019, signed by the artist in pencil recto, from the edition of 250 (there were also 24 artist’s proofs), published by Taschen, London, 60 x 60 cm. (23.6 x 23.6 in.) Ai We...
Archival Paper
$300
H 15 in W 22 in
Salinas Valley V.2, Screenprint Image of California Farmworker by Alvaro Marquez
By Alvaro Marquez
Located in Palm Springs, CA
11 layer-screen print on archival 100% cotton rag paper. Measures 15x22 inches. Based on original linocut from the Al Norte y P’atras/North and Back series. Depicts farm workers in my hometown of Salinas, California. Álvaro D. Márquez is a visual artist and part-time professor of Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies at Cal State LA. Much of Marquez's work explores art as social inquiry, looking at the history of displacement in the Americas, starting with Indigenous dispossession after European conquest, following through to current issues around gentrification and homelessness. Marquez was born into the working-class migrant community of East Salinas, in California’s Central...
Screen
Wine
By David Shrigley
Located in Manchester, GB
David Shrigley, Wine, 2021 Hand-signed and dated on the reverse Edition 29 of 125 75 x 56 cm Screenprint in colours Private Collection UK
Screen
$2,300
H 26.8 in W 33.3 in
Conceptual art photo engraving and screenprint 2005 27x33in hrs min kcal fat
Located in Miami, FL
Raul Cordero (Cuba, 1971) '32 hrs 53 min kcal: 783 fat: 35%', 2005 photo engraving and screenprint on paper Guarro Biblos 250g. 26.8 x 33.3 in. (68 x 84.5...
Screen, Engraving, Aquatint
$3,100
H 29.14 in W 29.14 in
A city with a millon eggs, Digital Print, 74 x 74 cm, Mexican Surrealism, 2019
By Pedro Friedeberg
Located in Ciudad de México, MX
A city with a millon eggs, by Pedro Friedeberg - Digital Print - 74 x 74 cm - Mexican Surrealism, c. 2019 The repetition of patterns and rhythm is present in almost every piece of...
Screen, Ink, Paper, Digital
$485
H 15.75 in W 14.97 in D 0.04 in
The Kiss - Gustav Klimt's Dog, original, contemporary, art print
By Mychael Barratt
Located in Deddington, GB
Screenprint and gold leaf on paper. Signed and titled in pencil. Numbered from the edition of 100. Image size: 220 x 220mm Paper size: 380 x 400mm Gold Leaf on Paper Edition of...
Gold Leaf
$2,800
H 60 in W 70 in D 0.3 in
"I Love You" Limited Edition towel/wall hanging (LARGE: 60 inches x 70 inches)
By Tracey Emin
Located in New York, NY
Tracey Emin I Love You/I Love Your Soul/I Love Your Smile, ca. 2010 100% Cotton Beach Towel 60 × 70 inches (folded it's 25 x 30 inches) Signed in plate, authorized printed...
Cotton, Screen, Mixed Media, Laid Paper
Live Each Day As If It Were Your First
By David Shrigley
Located in Manchester, GB
David Shrigley, I Can Sing For You, 2022 Hand-signed and dated on the reverse Edition 76 of 125 75 x 56 cm Screenprint in colours Private Collection UK
Screen
$28,000
H 20.25 in W 30.25 in
Kerry James Marshall - Keeping the Culture, silkscreen and linocut, Signed/N
By Kerry James Marshall
Located in New York, NY
Kerry James Marshall Keeping the Culture, 2011 Silkscreen and linocut in colors with full margins and deckled edges on Arches paper with full margins and deckled edges 20-1/4 x 30-1/4 inches Hand signed, titled and numbered 79/100 by Kerry James Marshall in graphite pencil on the front Published by Africa House International, Chicago Unframed In September, 2025, "Kerry James Marshall: The Histories" opened at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. This major exhibition was the largest presentation of Marshall's work in the United Kingdom and Europe, and featured more than 70 works by the the artist, including a large number of paintings and a selection of prints, drawings and sculptures. Highlights of the show include a new series of paintings that explore the transatlantic slave trade, along with Knowledge and Wonder, a mural commissioned in 1995 by the Chicago Public Library that is the largest painting Marshall has produced. The exhibition at the Royal Academy will then travel to the Kunsthaus Zurich and the Musee d'Art Modern in Paris. Kerry James Marshall's 2011 "Keeping the Culture" is based upon the artist's eponymous painting done the year earlier, which is featured in the Royal Academy Exhibition. In 2013, an original painting, upon which this work is based, sold at Christie's auction. Below is the Christie's Lot Essay for that painting: ..." Set in a revolutionary apartment in the cosmos, Kerry James Marshall's Keeping the Culture optimistically anticipates a future that pays homage to the past. Ushering in a new stage of the artist's output, Keeping the Culture shifts focus from the failed utopia of urban renewal and the commemoration of civil rights era heroes in favor of a more technically refined meditation on the preservation of the traditional and spiritual values that shaped a culture. Placed in an ultramodern environment, two siblings marvel at a projection of the earth--in which Marshall has aptly positioned the African continent toward the viewer-while their affectionate parents dance in the foreground. Overlooking the milky way, Marshall's space-age flat is decorated with earthly relics-wooden tribal sculptures...
Mixed Media, Pencil, Linocut, Screen
$150
H 15.7 in W 11.8 in
"Personaje" 1991 Signed Original Silkscreen & Watercolor Proof 16x12in Cubism
Located in Miami, FL
"Juan Sebastian Barbera (Mexico, 1964) 'Personaje', 1991 Silkscreen and Watercolor on paper Velin Arches 300 g. 15.8 x 11.9 in. (40 x 30 cm.) ID...
Screen, Watercolor
$3,000
H 17 in W 17 in
Gene Autry, Screen Print by Frank Romero, Contemporary Style, 1990s
By Frank Romero
Located in Palm Springs, CA
Portrait of Gene Autry, by Frank Romero This print was featured in “Dreamland”, the first solo exhibition of a Chicano artist at MOLAA (Museum of Latin American Art). This is the first time the entire museum has been dedicated to a single artist. Throughout his 40 year career as an artist, Frank Romero has been a dedicated member of the Los Angeles arts community. As a member of the 1970s Chicano art collective, Los Four...
Screen
Lobster, Pop Art Screenprint by Hunt Slonem
By Hunt Slonem
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Hunt Slonem Title: Lobster Year: 1980 Medium: Screenprint, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 250; AP 30 Image: 19 x 19 inches Paper Size: 22 x 30 inches
Screen
$755
H 26.38 in W 26.78 in D 0.04 in
Hockney's Dog - After the Splash, original, contemporary, art print
By Mychael Barratt
Located in Deddington, GB
Screenprint on paper Signed and titled in pencil Numbered from the edition of 75 Image size: 505 x 505 mm Paper size: 665 x 685 mm Silkscreen print on Paper Edition of 100 50...
Paper, Screen
Ai Weiwei - Cedar - Printer's Proof - tree
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Cedar, 2022 Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique 280gsm hand-signed and numbered 52.6 x 44.2 cm - Framed 48 x 38 cm - sheet Printer's Proof - Edition 1 of 3 To commemorate Ai Weiw...
Screen
Sold
H 18.71 in W 14.97 in
AI WEIWEI CEDAR (SMALL) Chinese Contemporary Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei - CEDAR (SMALL) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 150 Size: 47.5 x 38 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and ne...
Paper, Screen
Sold
H 9.88 in W 9.88 in D 0.02 in
Ai WeiWei 'Year of the Dragon (2024)' Lithograph Print
By Ai Weiwei
Located in San Rafael, CA
Ai Weiwei (b. 1957) Year of the Dragon (2024) From the series Dragon II Lithograph on Madrid Litho White 140gsm paper Edition 147/1500 Signed in plate Published and printed by #circa...
Lithograph
Middle Finger in Red
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Calabasas, CA
Artist: Ai Weiwei Title: Middle Finger in Red Year: 2023 Medium: 2 colour silkscreen print on 410gsm Somerset Tub Sized Satin White paper Edition: 1285; signed in pencil Sheet: 23 3/...
Screen
Sold
H 27.76 in W 21.86 in
AI WEIWEI - CEDAR (LARGE) Chinese Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink White
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei CEDAR (LARGE) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 50 Size: 70.5 x 55.5 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and nev...
Paper, Screen
Cedar (small)
By Ai Weiwei
Located in London, GB
Cedar (small), 2022 Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique 280gsm hand-signed and numbered 47.5 x 38 cm Edition 64 of 150 To commemorate Ai Weiwei’s gift of a tree sculpture, Cedar, 2022, to Downing...
Screen
Sold
H 27.76 in W 21.86 in
AI WEIWEI - CEDAR (LARGE) Chinese Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink White
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei CEDAR (LARGE) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 50 Size: 70.5 x 55.5 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and nev...
Paper, Screen
Sold
H 27.76 in W 21.86 in
AI WEIWEI - CEDAR (LARGE) Chinese Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink White
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei CEDAR (LARGE) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 50 Size: 70.5 x 55.5 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and nev...
Paper, Screen
Sold
H 27.76 in W 21.86 in
AI WEIWEI - CEDAR (LARGE) Chinese Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink White
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei CEDAR (LARGE) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 50 Size: 70.5 x 55.5 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and nev...
Paper, Screen
Sold
H 27.76 in W 21.86 in
AI WEIWEI - CEDAR (LARGE) Chinese Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink White
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei CEDAR (LARGE) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 50 Size: 70.5 x 55.5 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and nev...
Paper, Screen
Sold
H 27.76 in W 21.86 in
AI WEIWEI - CEDAR (LARGE) Chinese Modern Activism Tree Tradition Ink White
By Ai Weiwei
Located in Madrid, Madrid
Ai Weiwei CEDAR (LARGE) Date of creation: 2022 Medium: Screenprint on Somerset Velvet Antique paper Edition: 50 Size: 70.5 x 55.5 cm Condition: In mint conditions, brand new and nev...
Paper, Screen
Sold
H 13.5 in W 17 in
Cats (Red), original silkscreen, hand signed 87/150 with official & gallery COAs
By Ai Weiwei
Located in New York, NY
Ai Weiwei Cats (Red), 2022 Screen print on Saunders Waterford 300gsm paper Hand signed, dated, and numbered 87/150 by Ai Weiwei on the front 13 1/2 × 17 inches Unframed This print was originally published by Kettle's Yard - before it rapidly sold out. It is accompanied by the Certificate of Authenticity issued by the publisher to the original owner. The print was editioned by master printer, Kip Gresham at The Print Studio, Cambridge for Kettle's Yard. It was made using an original drawing ‘cut’ into an acrylic sheet. The image is then reversed when printed. Description from the publisher: "Drawing has been fundamental to Ai Weiwei’s artistic practice from an early age. He also has a longstanding love of cats, and they appear frequently in the artist’s social media posts. Many cats used to roam his studio in Beijing. As part of the Kettle’s Yard exhibition, Ai’s ‘Cats wallpaper’ (2015) will be displayed in the Castle Street window. This artwork was originally exhibited as ‘Studio Cats’ in the exhibition Andy Warhol / Ai Weiwei at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, reflecting both artists’ mutual love of cats. For Kettle’s Yard, the drawing of Maple and Birch has been inserted among the other cats depicted on the wallpaper." Quote from Ai Weiwei: "I like cats very much because of their independent character, alertness and understanding of human beings; I have feelings approximating to reverence for them. Cats have been regarded as psychic animals since ancient times, no matter in China or ancient Greece. What’s even more interesting is that if a selfie of mine would be seen by 100 people, a cat photo...
Screen, Pencil