NATIONAL BESTSELLER • In this beautifully illustrated and deeply philosophical graphic memoir
legendary artist Ai Weiwei explores the connection between artistic expression and intellectual
freedom through the lens of the Chinese zodiac. ONE OF NPR’S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR As a
child living in exile during the Cultural Revolution Ai Weiwei often found himself with
nothing to read but government-approved comic books. Although they were restricted by the
confines of political propaganda Ai Weiwei was struck by the artists’ ability to express their
thoughts on art and humanity through graphic storytelling. Now decades later Ai Weiwei and
Italian comic artist Gianluca Costantini present Zodiac Ai Weiwei’s first graphic memoir.
Inspired by the twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac and their associated human characteristics
Ai Weiwei masterfully interweaves ancient Chinese folklore with stories of his life family
and career. The narrative shifts back and forth through the years—at once in the past present
and future—mirroring memory and our relationship to time. As readers delve deeper into the
beautifully illustrated pages of Zodiac they will find not only a personal history of Ai
Weiwei and an examination of the sociopolitical climate in which he makes his art but a
philosophical exploration of what it means to find oneself through art and freedom of
expression. Contemplative and political Zodiac will inspire readers to return again and again
to Ai Weiwei’s musings on the relationship between art time and our shared humanity.
