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Arend, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei made a quiet return to Beijing in mid-December 2025, his first visit since leaving China in 2015. The three-week trip, which he described as "smooth and pleasant," has raised questions about whether Chinese authorities are recalibrating their approach to high-profile critics or simply calculating that his diminished domestic visibility poses minimal risk.
Ai traveled with his son to visit his elderly mother, Gao Ying. Upon arrival at Beijing Capital International Airport, he underwent nearly two hours of questioning, authorities asked simple questions about his travel plans and stay duration. After that initial inspection, he moved freely through the city, meeting old friends, lifting weights at a gym, and sharing meals with family. The visit stood in stark contrast to his final years in China before 2015, when he faced intensive surveillance from authorities.
A Decade of Exile and Confrontation
Ai's conflict with Chinese authorities escalated after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, when he launched an independent investigation into collapsed school buildings. His team documented over 5,000 student casualties and accused officials of corruption related to substandard construction. In 2011, police detained him for 81 days on tax evasion charges and confiscated his passport. When authorities returned it in 2015, he left for Berlin, later moving to the UK and Portugal.
During his January 2026 visit, Ai remarked that China appears to be "in an upward phase," citing increasing individual wealth and improved living standards. Yet he maintains deep skepticism about political freedoms under China's one-party system.
Challenging Western Moral Authority
Days after returning from Beijing, Ai spoke to Reuters in London while promoting his book "Censorship". He stated bluntly that "the West is not even in a position to indict China" on human rights, pointing to Western nations' own records on press freedom and their treatment of dissidents like Julian Assange. Assange faced 14 years of legal proceedings, including more than five years of imprisonment, before his June 2024 release.
Ai's criticism draws from personal experience. In November 2023, London's Lisson Gallery cancelled his exhibition "Bricks as Mortars" days before its scheduled opening after he posted comments on social media about US involvement in Gaza and Jewish influence on American policy. The gallery stated they had agreed together that it wasn't the right time for the show, but Ai disputed this characterization, saying his exhibition was "effectively cancelled" due to his tweet.
Following the London cancellation, three additional Ai Weiwei exhibitions were called off: another Lisson Gallery show scheduled for March 2024 in New York, and two shows at Galerie Max Hetzler in Paris (November 2023–January 2024) and Berlin (June–August 2025).
The Exhibition Content
The cancelled "Bricks as Mortars" exhibition was intended to display Ai's large-scale Lego-block portrait of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange titled To Keep a Person Ignorant is to Place them in a Cage (2023). The exhibition's press release described it as "a reflection upon the real and present struggles between self and state, source and copy, information and conspiracy, painting and pixel", the very tensions that Lisson Gallery cited as reasons for cancellation.
Comparing Western Censorship to Authoritarian Regimes
Ai framed the cancellation as part of broader censorship, stating: "It's not directed solely at me but at the broader culture of a society lacking a spiritual immune system. When a society cannot withstand diverse voices, it teeters on the brink of collapse". He emphasized that while he could "live without ever doing another exhibition," he "cannot live without free thinking and free speech. That would mean the end of life".
He has compared contemporary Western censorship to China's Cultural Revolution, telling Sky News that political suppression in the West today is "exactly the same" as what he experienced under Mao Zedong. "So many people by giving their basic opinions, they get fired, they get censored. This has become very common," he stated, citing academics suspended for Gaza-related comments and artists who faced cancelled exhibitions and withdrawn art purchases.
Ai's return occurred as UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer made his own visit to China in January 2026, the first by a British PM since Theresa May in 2018. Ai noted the trip was "logical and pragmatic" given economic interests but suggested Western leaders addressing human rights in China would appear "grossly hypocritical". Observers have speculated whether Beijing allowed his return as a strategic opening or because a decade of domestic censorship has erased his name from public consciousness.
After a decade in exile, dissident artist Ai Weiwei quietly returned to Beijing in December 2025, his first visit since leaving China in 2015.
The trip raises profound questions about artistic freedom, censorship, and moral authority:
Ai moved freely through Beijing after initial airport questioning
He called China "in an upward phase" while maintaining skepticism about political freedoms
Days later, he challenged Western moral authority on human rights
His critique stems from personal experience: In 2023, London's Lisson Gallery cancelled his exhibition after social media posts about Gaza—triggering three more cancellations across Europe.
Ai now compares Western censorship to China's Cultural Revolution, calling political suppression "exactly the same" as under Mao Zedong.
"When a society cannot withstand diverse voices, it teeters on the brink of collapse," he warns.
#ArtisticFreedom #Censorship #AiWeiwei #HumanRights #FreedomOfExpression #China #WesternCensorship #ArtAndPolitics #Mimeta #CulturalFreedom #DissidentArt #Gaza #PressSupport #ArtisticCensorship
References:
Primary News Sources
CNN - "Ai Weiwei quietly returns to China after a decade: 'It felt like...'" (January 22, 2026)[cnn]
Art Asia Pacific - "Ai Weiwei Returns to China After 10 Years" (January 27, 2026)[artasiapacific]
ARTnews - "Ai Weiwei Returns to China After Decade-Long Exile" (January 27, 2026)[artnews]
The Straits Times - "Ai Weiwei says West lacks moral authority to criticise Beijing on rights" (January 29, 2026)[straitstimes]
Mezha - "Ai Weiwei's Quiet Return to China After Nearly a Decade Abroad" (January 23, 2026)[mezha]
BBC - "Prime minister flies to China for three-day visit" (January 27, 2026)[bbc]
ABC News - "What to know about UK-China relations as Prime Minister Keir Starmer..." (January 27, 2026)[abcnews.go]
Exhibition Cancellation Coverage
Instagram/Lisson Gallery - Official statement on Ai Weiwei exhibition (November 13, 2023)[instagram]
The Art Newspaper - "Lisson Gallery puts Ai Weiwei London show on hold over..." (November 13, 2023)[theartnewspaper]
Art Asia Pacific - "Lisson Gallery Cancels Ai Weiwei's Show Over Critical Post" (November 14, 2023)[artasiapacific]
Evening Standard - "Ai Weiwei says he has been 'effectively cancelled' by..." (November 14, 2023)[standard.co]
Historical Background
Global Voices - "Investigation into the Earthquake Student Casualties" (May 5, 2010)[transparency.globalvoicesonline]
New York Times - "China Presses Its Tax Case in Dispute With Artist" (July 14, 2011)[nytimes]
Wikipedia - "Ai Weiwei" (updated 2006-2022)[en.wikipedia]
Circa Art - "Ai Weiwei: Recapturing the Tragedy and Corruption..." (June 2, 2022)[circa]
Public Delivery - "Ai Weiwei: The Sichuan earthquake & 9000 children's..." (April 15, 2025)[publicdelivery]
Julian Assange References
Dutch Parliament - "The detention and conviction of Julian Assange and their..." (October 1, 2024)[tweedekamer]
Doughty Street Chambers - "Julian Assange released from prison and returns to Australia" (June 25, 2024)[doughtystreet.co]
Censorship Comparison Coverage
Artmajeur - "Ai Weiwei Criticizes Western Censorship as More Severe Than Mao's China"[artmajeur]
The Independent - "Ai Weiwei: Western censorship 'exactly the same' as Mao Zedong's China"[independent.co]
Biographical Context
ARTnews - "'My Mother Tells Me Not to Go Back to China': Ai Weiwei..." (September 15, 2022)[news.artnet]
CBC - "Ai Weiwei's art moves mother to tears at Venice opening" (May 27, 2013)[cbc]
Elephant Art - "Ai Weiwei and the Art of Nuance" (June 12, 2024)[elephant]
