Though I was inspired to write this post after seeing
the documentary Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, I have included
information and events that have occurred since the documentary's release in 2012. Rather than a review of the documentary, this is a look into Ai
Weiwei and those concerns that surround and envelop much of his work as an artist and many of his actions as an activist.
Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei adamantly defends his rights in a society suppressed by government control. He has not only created conceptual art that addresses political and human rights issues, but he has also utilized online writing outlets like a blog and Twitter to document both personal and societal injustices.
The 2012 documentary Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry compiles footage from Alison Klayman's four years as a journalist living in China. She foremost captures Ai as an international artist and architect whose primary motivation is to achieve freedom of self-expression in China. He voices support for fellow human rights advocates like Liu Xiaobo, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010 while imprisoned for "subversion of state." This crime is undeniably common among Chinese who speak out for their own rights and, thereby, speak out against the government.
Three key conflicts between Ai and the government in the past five years sustain drama throughout the documentary: the Sichuan Earthquake Names Project, a physical attack on him that resulted in brain injury, and his detainment by authorities for 81 days. The government's censorship of its own people is at the heart of all three.
Government authorities shut down Ai's blog in May 2009, after he posted the names and birth dates of 5,212 schoolchildren who died in the collapse of poorly constructed government school buildings during the magnitude 7.9 earthquake of China's Sichuan Province. Activists Tan Zuoren and Xie Yuhui had already uncovered evidence that the government buildings fell far short of meeting construction standards. Tan was arrested after publishing his findings online; Ai's blog was merely shut down, as this article by Katherine Grube of ArtAsiaPacific Magazine outlines in more detail.
On August 12, 2009, Ai was supposed to testify at a trial in defense of Tan. Early that morning, however, police attacked Ai in his hotel room. One might assume that the attack was meant to prevent Ai from speaking at the trial, and it did. One month later, Ai was hospitalized with a brain injury that was most likely caused by the August 12 beating. See this article for further details on the incident.
So, Ai suffered infringement on his freedom of speech as well as cranial trauma. Although freedom of speech is protected under the Chinese constitution, government censorship combats it often, as described by the Council of Foreign Relations. This BBC News article also takes a peek into exploring just how online censorship in China works.
As Never Sorry emphasizes, Ai's efforts to improve human rights in China are being heard. Sadly, the Chinese government's attacks against him speak even louder. He has personally suffered for boldly and publicly confronting issues that weigh on the conscience of the Chinese people. In 2011, Ai was detained for 81 days by Beijing authorities for alleged tax evasion. His disappearance garnered a lot of media attention, and months after his release, supporters pitched in to help pay Ai's outrageous tax bill. His detention has since become the subject of a book released this year, Hanging Man: The Arrest of Ai Weiwei by Barnaby Martin as well as a play (based on the book) by Howard Brenton, entitled The Arrest of Ai Weiwei.
Although Never Sorry foremost documents Ai's political endeavors and the injustices he has faced as a result, Klayman also peers into Ai's personal life: Ai with his mother, Ai with his son, Ai in his studio, even Ai marveling at his cats. Klayman paints a well-rounded portrait of Ai, who revels in self-expression, who proclaims political frustration, and who executes his ideas through demonstration. His words reach millions of people through Twitter every day while his photos go viral 'round the worldwide web.
In an interview with Time magazine as one of the runners-up "Person of the Year" for 2011, Ai says his "first blog post was one sentence, something like 'To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.'" To this end, Ai's politically charged works like the Study of Perspective series (1995-2003) defy self-censorship.
Some writers label Ai as outspoken or find his antics to be over the top. Take his parody of Psy's hit "Gangnam Style," which, at over one million views, has the most views of Ai's YouTube videos. Importantly, Ai entitled his version "草泥马style." Translated into English, this title means "grass-mud horse." China Digital Times explains its intended and unique meaning as an anti-government term among Chinese internet users.
The significance that cannot be overlooked is that, with the worldwide platform that is the internet, Ai is being heard, and that is how he fights for people's right to self-expression in China. Never Sorry can be seen as an extension of Ai's activism, for it is an account by Klayman of Ai's experiences and his unrelenting efforts to be heard.
Here are a few more interesting reads regarding Ai Weiwei:
"Hong Kong Graffiti Challenges Chinese Artist's Arrest," Louisa Lim, NPR, 2011.
"Is Ai Weiwei China's Most Dangerous Man?" Mark Stevens, Smithsonian, 2012.
Ai Weiwei: According to What? Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 2012-2013.
"Whither Moral Courage?" Salman Rushdie, The New York Times, 2013.
