Artist, designer, architect, author, publisher and curator: Ai Weiwei is a truly 21st-century creative, influential across a variety of media. He has come to be regarded as a contemporary artist of global stature, and his strong social conscience has galvanised a generation of artists. With convictions that touch on topics such as imprisonment, borders and disaster, Ai has often found himself in contention with the Chinese authorities. This book is published to coincide with the major exhibition at the Royal Academy - the first UK showing of his work on such a scale.