When authorities placed Ai Weiwei under house arrest in 2011, it was just the latest flashpoint in a running battle between Beijing authorities and China's most controversial artist-cum-activist. Ai spent nearly three months in confinement, which only fueled his social activism and pushed him further along a path to worldwide acclaim and eventual exile.
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Books: Ai Weiwei's memoir is a mesmerizing portrait of an iconoclast
In '1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows,' exiled Chinese artist brings his story full circle
Ai Weiwei's wonderfully comprehensive memoir -- written in compelling, straightforward prose -- is as searing as any of his celebrated art. The photo on the right shows the artist in New York City's Lower East Side in 1985. (Source photos courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio)
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