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Save the Studio of China's Most Influential Dissident Artist
  1. Signatures
    683 out of 1,000
    Petitioning
    1. Mayor of Shanghai (+ 2 others)
      Petitioning
      close
      • Mayor of Shanghai (Han Zheng)
      • Minister of Foreign Affairs, China (Yang Jiechi)
      • State Council Information Office
  2. Created By
    Benjamin Joffe-Walt
    New York, NY
About this Petition Petition Letter Petition Updates

Two years ago Ai Weiwei, a famous Chinese artist and architectural designer, was invited by senior Shanghai officials to build a studio in a new cultural district in the city. 

But then he went overtly political, making international headlines by quitting the consortium building the Beijing Olympic Stadium, accusing the country's leaders of trying to present a false image of the country.

He then launched a high-profile investigation into the deaths of some 5,000 schoolchildren in the Sichuan earthquake of May 2008. He was beaten a year later by Sichuan police while visiting.

This summer, after two years of construction on the studio he was invited to build, Mr. Ai was informed by Chinese officials that he did not have the proper papers for the studio and it would soon be demolished.  

Ai Weiwei responded by planning a massive party to commemorate the demolition, leading the authorities to place the artist under house arrest. 

After the event was hyped up by dissident Chinese bloggers and the international press, the authorities stepped in, placing Mr Ai under house arrest in his Beijing home until the early hours of this morning.

It is not clear exactly when Ai Weiwei's studio is set to be demolished. Help us pressure the Shanghai authorities to think twice before going ahead with it.

 

Why People Are Signing
Recent Signatures

No to the Demolition of Ai Weiwei's Studio

Greetings,

Two years ago, a senior Shanghai official invited Ai Weiwei, the esteemed artist and son of one of China's most famous poets, Ai Qing, to build a studio in the city.

Since then he has made a number of moves - quitting the consortium building the Beijing Olympic stadium and launching an investigation into the deaths of some 5,000 schoolchildren in the Sichuan earthquake of May 2008.

We think these efforts by Mr Ai help strengthen China, making it a society open to free debate.

But this summer, after two years of construction on the studio he was invited to build, Mr. Ai was informed by local officials that he did not have the proper papers for the studio and it would soon be demolished.

We strongly protest this move, which is authoritarian, repressive and can only lead to the exact kind of embarrassment which China seeks to avoid.

We call on you to do everything in your power to stop the demolition of Ai Weiwei's studio.

[Your name]

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