Ai Weiwei was born in 1957 and studied at the Beijing Film Academy. In 1978 he co-founded the artist collective The Stars and in 1981 studied under Sean Scully at Parsons School of Design in New York. In 1997 Weiwei co-founded China Art Archives & Warehouse (CAAW), and in 1999 he opened his studio in Caochangdi. An artist of international acclaim with a particular interest in architecture, Weiwei was instrumental in the design of Beijing’s famous ‘bird’s nest’ Olympic stadium.