Articles
Ai Weiwei
Opinion
1 year ago
“We have to stay strong. We have to believe art always wins.”
From isolation, artist and activist Ai Weiwei shares a message of hope for the Royal Academy’s Friends, visitors and followers around the world.
RA Recommends
> 4 years ago
Five art shows to see over the holiday: Turner Contemporary, Somerset House and more
From a human-animal hybrid figures to black and white photographs of modern Mali, the festive break is your last chance to catch some of the best shows of 2016.
RA Exhibitions
5 years ago
11 beautiful art gardens to see before you die
From Frida Kahlo’s courtyard to a tropical sculpture park in Brazil, art and the outdoors meet to spectacular effect across the world. With Monet’s paintings of Giverny in our galleries, here are 11 more must-see gardens for art-lovers.
Opinion
> 5 years ago
10 of our most-loved blogs from 2015
From a note from Diebenkorn’s diary that went viral to a peep inside our latest show, these were some of the features our readers loved most this year.
Artists
> 5 years ago
Art quiz of the year 2015
Know your art? Take our quiz of the year and see how you measure up…
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei: podcast round-up
From a curator’s introduction to the work of Ai Weiwei, to Cornelia Parker RA discussing the artist’s destructive techniques, we present a round-up of podcasts on our blockbuster exhibition.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Bring your Lego to RA courtyard, says Ai Weiwei
In response to the toy company’s refusal to sell him a bulk order of Lego, Ai Weiwei is crowd-sourcing the bricks for a new installation.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei’s rules for life and art
With a promise never to be silenced, China’s most famous artist has become known for his pithy, poetic words on freedom and creativity. We share 21 Weiwei-isms.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Art and activism: can it change the world?
Performance and protest is key to the work of Ai Weiwei, as it is to many of his contemporaries. But in the face of global crisis, can art really effect change? Professor Jen Harvie explores the role of the artist-activist.
Opinion
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei at Helsinki Art Museum
RA Magazine’s Gill Crabbe pays a visit to Ai Weiwei’s new wood-themed exhibition in Helsinki.
Opinion
> 5 years ago
Author Ma Jian on Ai Weiwei and freedom of expression in China
Ma Jian is renowned for his novels exploring subjects censored in China, where his books are banned, and he has been barred from entering the Chinese mainland. Ahead of Ai Weiwei’s RA retrospective, we asked the writer about his admiration for the artist, and about the limits of free expression in China.
Opinion
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei’s alternative vision for Beijing’s buildings
With a display on Beijing’s Caochangdi in our Architecture Space, our curator discusses the Ai Weiwei-designed buildings of this artists’ region, and their place in a rapidly developing city.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei: 13 works to know
Ai Weiwei has worked in everything from paint to readymades. As our landmark exhibition examines work from 1993 up to the present day, we take a look at some of the key works to know from across Ai’s career.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Make an Ai Weiwei artwork
In an exclusive extract from a new book of DIY projects by artists and designers, we share one by Ai Weiwei, as this provocative artist takes over our main galleries.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei: a beginner’s guide
From surveillance cameras to smashed ceramics, Ai Weiwei is uncompromising in his fight for the freedom of expression. Here’s what you need to know about China’s most famous artist.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai of the tiger: Sam Phillips meets Ai Weiwei in his Beijing studio
Fearless and uncompromising, Ai Weiwei’s art challenges cultural values, confronts injustices and pushes materials to their limit. Sam Phillips talks to the artist about his show at the RA, which he was not expecting to be able to attend.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Royal Academy welcomes Ai Weiwei visa decision
The artist has now been granted a full six-month UK visa by the Home Office.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei is refused a UK business visa
RA Artistic Director Tim Marlow comments on the news – which could affect the artist’s attendance at his upcoming exhibition.
RA Exhibitions
> 5 years ago
Ai Weiwei will travel to the UK for RA exhibition
After four years without travel, the artist has had his passport returned and will attend his landmark exhibition in our galleries.
RA Exhibitions
< 6 years ago
Introducing Ai Weiwei’s ‘Tree’
Curator Adrian Locke on the monumental installation that will be coming to the RA’s courtyard alongside our Ai Weiwei exhibition.
RA Exhibitions
< 6 years ago
Ai Weiwei at the RA: Sharing our vision for the show
Our collaboration with Ai Weiwei has extended to producing the exhibition’s poster image, catalogue and multimedia guide, explains curator Adrian Locke.
RA Exhibitions
6 years ago
In the neighbourhood: Ai Weiwei’s ‘village’ in Beijing
A vibrant arts quarter has grown up around Ai Weiwei’s home and studio in Beijing. Our curator Adrian Locke explores the area, and finds himself on a journey into the city’s past.
Inside the Academy
6 years ago
Cats and conversations: laying out the exhibition with Ai Weiwei
At a meeting in his Beijing studio, Ai Weiwei and curator Adrian Locke plan the gallery layout for the artist’s major RA show this year.
Inside the Academy
> 6 years ago
In the studio: a glimpse into Ai Weiwei’s world
Curator Adrian Locke gets to know artist Ai Weiwei and his studio team on a sunny day in Beijing.
RA Exhibitions
> 6 years ago
From Mayfair to Beijing: planning an exhibition with Ai Weiwei
How to put a major exhibition together when the artist in question can’t leave his home country? Ai Weiwei has a virtual tour of our galleries before curator Adrian Locke visits him (and his cats) in Beijing.
RA Exhibitions
> 6 years ago
A visit to Ai Weiwei’s Beijing studio
As the RA prepares for a major Ai Weiwei exhibition in 2015, we visited the honorary Royal Academician at his studio in China.