Ai Weiwei on Censorship

A thought-provoking work by a singular voice, this short, sharp essay invites us to critically reconsider power, ideology and the boundaries of free speech.

Invisible, invasive and widely taken for granted, censorship is a globalized force as much driven by commercial interests as political agendas. Ai Weiwei – artist, activist and one of the world’s most influential cultural figures – has first-hand experience of its power. In this urgent piece of writing, he makes a rallying cry for free speech in an age shaped by big data, mass surveillance and intrusive new technologies of control.

Ai Weiwei examines how censorship persists both in the overt propagandizing and redactions of authoritarian regimes, as well as subtly within democratic frameworks, exploring how international corporations, cultural institutions, social media and so-called ideologies of ‘freedom’ have provided fertile ground for new, more insidious, suppressions.

Review

'Given that there can be few contemporary artists who have thought more about censorship – its goals, techniques, efficacy – than Ai, it’s inevitable this new book, which runs to fewer than 90 pages, will be read as his distilled wisdom on the topic' - Sukhdev Sandhu, Guardian

About the Author

Ai Weiwei is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian and activist. He is the recipient of the 2022 Praemium Imperiale for sculpture from the Japan Art Association in Tokyo, the 2015 Ambassador of Conscience Award from Amnesty International and the 2012 Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent from the Human Rights Foundation. His most recent book is 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows.