Artist, designer, architect, author, publisher and curator: Ai Weiwei hon ra is a truly twenty-first-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.

Ai Weiwei is published to coincide with the major exhibition at the Royal Academy the first UK showing of his work on such a scale. The Academy will welcome specially created installations and artworks, constructed from materials as diverse as marble, bicycles and furniture. Ai has taken a keen interest in the publication, not only designing pages but also creating a new artwork that is reproduced on the cover. As well as featuring an exclusive interview between the artist and Tim Marlow, the publication also includes contributions from John Tancock, Daniel Rosbottom and Adrian Locke, who site the artist in both his global context and his position in China, exploring the powerful influence of both.