According to Xinhua News Agency in China, Ai Weiwei has been released on bail due to “good attitude in confessing his crimes as well as a chronic disease he suffers from.”

Although this does not mean he is completely free, it is a good step forward in this fiasco. Of course, him and many others artists are still at risk of being arrested for expressing their opinions and beliefs inside China.

In the event Ai or others do get arrested, the China Blocker will be reactivated to support whomever is arrested.

According to Xinhua News Agency in China, Ai Weiwei has been released on bail due to "good attitude in confessing his crimes as well as a chronic disease he suffers from." Although this does not mean he is completely free, it is a good step forward in this fiasco. Of course, him and many others artists are still at risk of being arrested for expressing their opinions and beliefs inside China. In the event Ai or others do get arrested, the China Blocker will be reactivated to support whomever is arrested.

(“Let the Bullets Fly is the highest grossing domestic film in China’s cinematic history.” Wikipedia)

China’s lack of restriction over copyrighted material can be exploited to help spread outlawed content to a large online audience seeking entertainment. Youku and toudo.com are mainland China’s largest online video providers *, and are fertile soil for planting seeds of democracy in the cracks of copyright violation.

How To:

1) Download movies popular in China. Make sure they are in Mandarin, or with Chinese subtitles. If searching on Youku or Tudou, search for the Chinese title of the movie (rather than the English equivalent) and then download the video (Download Helper is a good tool). English Wikipedia entries will often include the Chinese characters of Chinese movies, people and events.

2) Download videos of issues outlawed in mainland China. A good place to find this kind of content in Mandarin is on Taiwanese news websites or on youtube by searching for a topic in Chinese (e.g., 茉莉花革命 = “jasmine revolution”).

3) Edit clips from step #2 into the clip from step #1. Keep the added content short and sporadic enough that they don’t draw too much attention away from the main attraction. I’ve been inserting about 30 seconds of political content for every 30 minutes of entertainment.

4) Upload the finished product to youku.com, toudo.com or others. Remember that all text should be in Chinese. It may be helpful to copy and paste text from existing uploads of the same the movie. Chinese video sites are more likely to remove a video for political content rather than copyright violations, so once the movie is uploaded don’t draw attention to it by linking to it.

Notes on uploading videos: To upload a video, you will need to create an account on the video hosting website. The steps are identical to all other websites (you supply an email, password and captcha code). Google translate is useful for figuring things out. Once logged in, most sites have upload arrows in the upper right-hand corner. You can upload up to 200 mb online and up to 10 gb if you download a site’s uploader application. This process seems to run smoother on Windows machines.

Example clips:

("Let the Bullets Fly is the highest grossing domestic film in China's cinematic history." Wikipedia) China's lack of restriction over copyrighted material can be exploited to help spread outlawed content to a large online audience seeking entertainment. Youku and toudo.com are mainland China's largest online video providers *, and are fertile soil for planting seeds of democracy in the cracks of copyright violation. How To: 1) Download movies popular in China. Make sure they are in Mandarin, or with Chinese subtitles. If searching on Youku or Tudou, search for the Chinese title of the movie (rather than the English equivalent) and then download the video (Download Helper is a good tool). English Wikipedia entries will often include the Chinese characters of Chinese movies, people and events. 2) Download videos of issues outlawed in mainland China. A good place to find this kind of content in Mandarin is on Taiwanese news websites or on youtube by searching for a topic in Chinese (e.g., 茉莉花革命 = "jasmine revolution"). 3) Edit clips from step #2 into the clip from step #1. Keep the added content short and sporadic enough that they don't draw too much attention away from the main attraction. I've been inserting about 30 seconds of political content for every 30 minutes of entertainment. 4) Upload the finished product to youku.com, toudo.com or others. Remember that all text should be in Chinese. It may be helpful to copy and paste text from existing uploads of the same the movie. Chinese video sites are more likely to remove a video for political content rather than copyright violations, so once the movie is uploaded don't draw attention to it by linking to it. Notes on uploading videos: To upload a video, you will need to create an account on the video hosting website. The steps are identical to all other websites (you supply an email, password and captcha code). Google translate is useful for figuring things out. Once logged in, most sites have upload arrows in the upper right-hand corner. You can upload up to 200 mb online and up to 10 gb if you download a site's uploader application. This process seems to run smoother on Windows machines. Example clips:

Make your own FREE Ai Weiwei glasses today!! Download the post card PDF, print double sided, cut and mount the parts!! Show off your pair of FREE Ai Weiwei glasses!!

Aram Bartholl 2011

Make your own FREE Ai Weiwei glasses today!! Download the post card PDF, print double sided, cut and mount the parts!! Show off your pair of FREE Ai Weiwei glasses!! Aram Bartholl 2011 Download FREE Ai Weiwei glasses! based on First Person Shooter - glasses 2006 see also FUCK 3D glasses

The notorious artist Ai Weiwei has been detained by Chinese authorities with very little known information about his status and wellbeing*. He has been was detained for 81 days, upsetting many in the art world for the treatment of an expressive artist in a country where outspoken expression is largely oppressed.

We, as artists and art viewers, should not let this happen. Protest the Chinese detention of Ai Weiwei. Boycott! Protest! Block Chinese sites until Ai Weiwei is released by preventing yourself from surfing into Chinese web territories.

Download the China Web Boycott extension for your browser and boycott Chinese websites whenever artists, like Ai Weiwei, are detained without explanation or justification. Be alerted when he is released, as well as when other artists are detained in China, and boycott Chinese web sites only when artists are being held in detention!

China Blocker concept and code by Greg Leuch (@gleuch).

The notorious artist Ai Weiwei has been detained by Chinese authorities with very little known information about his status and wellbeing*. He has been was detained for 81 days, upsetting many in the art world for the treatment of an expressive artist in a country where outspoken expression is largely oppressed. We, as artists and art viewers, should not let this happen. Protest the Chinese detention of Ai Weiwei. Boycott! Protest! Block Chinese sites until Ai Weiwei is released by preventing yourself from surfing into Chinese web territories. Download Now! Available for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari browsers. Download the China Web Boycott extension for your browser and boycott Chinese websites whenever artists, like Ai Weiwei, are detained without explanation or justification. Be alerted when he is released, as well as when other artists are detained in China, and boycott Chinese web sites only when artists are being held in detention! China Blocker concept and code by Greg Leuch (@gleuch). //document.write(''); //var cb_incr = 0, cb_intv = setInterval(function() {if (typeof(cb_status) != 'undefined') {$('#weiwei_days').html(cb_status.num_days); clearInterval(cb_intv);} else if (cb_incr > 10) {clearInterval(cb_intv);} else {cb_incr++;}}, 250); function cb_addon_info(r) {try{var r = eval(r); if (r.download_count > 0) $('#cb_addon_count').html('Downloaded over '+ r.download_pretty_count +' times!');} catch(e){}}

Say it like Ai Weiwei!! Make some noise !! Free Ai Weiwei !!

Drag and drop the link below ↓ to your bookmarks tool bar above ↑ (tutorial below). Hit the FUCK OFF – Bookmarklet in desired situation while you surf the web! Say it like Ai Weiwei!! Post your screen shots in the comments!
‘

Ai Weiei – FUCK OFF – Bookmarklet
‘

FUCK OFF !! Deutsche Bank, BMW and Siemens for keeping their mouths shut about Ai Weiwei’s arrest. Yes, just keep sponsoring art shows and culture in China and pretend nothing has happend …. FUCK OFF !!!

by Aram Bartholl 2011

‘How to’ bookmaklet GIF tutorial:

Based on the awesome

>> Kanye Vision Bookmarklet <

by Evan Roth & Tobias Leingruber 2009

Say it like Ai Weiwei!! Make some noise !! Free Ai Weiwei !! Drag and drop the link below ↓ to your bookmarks tool bar above ↑ (tutorial below). Hit the FUCK OFF - Bookmarklet in desired situation while you surf the web! Say it like Ai Weiwei!! Post your screen shots in the comments! ' Ai Weiei - FUCK OFF - Bookmarklet ' FUCK OFF !! Deutsche Bank, BMW and Siemens for keeping their mouths shut about Ai Weiwei's arrest. Yes, just keep sponsoring art shows and culture in China and pretend nothing has happend .... FUCK OFF !!! by Aram Bartholl 2011 'How to' bookmaklet GIF tutorial: Based on the awesome &gt;&gt; Kanye Vision Bookmarklet &lt; by Evan Roth &amp; Tobias Leingruber 2009

via Rocketboom

more at artnet, and the Brooklyn Paper

via Rocketboom more at artnet, and the Brooklyn Paper

I received word from James via an email forwarded from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. They visited him on Friday and report that he is in good health and eager to get back home. He was arrested 5 days ago in Beijing for “upsetting public order” and is now serving 10 days for suspicion of activities in regards to his affiliation with the organization Students for a Free Tibet. He has not been formally charged through the judicial system and should not be subject to further judicial proceedings. According to the authorities he will be released Aug. 30th and allowed to depart China. The Embassy stated that it continues to advocate on his behalf at the highest levels and monitors his case around the clock.

UPDATE
James Powderly and 7 other US citizens detained in China have been released and are on their way to the US. They should arrive in Los Angeles around 6 PM Pacific time. Thanks to Senator Clinton, Representative Velazquez, Senator Lautenberg, and Ambassador Randt for advocating for James and his early release. Also big ups to all of our friends that have sent supportive messages and helped in contacting elected officials. Stay tuned for more info from James about his stay at Chong Wen Detention House.

I received word from James via an email forwarded from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. They visited him on Friday and report that he is in good health and eager to get back home. He was arrested 5 days ago in Beijing for "upsetting public order" and is now serving 10 days for suspicion of activities in regards to his affiliation with the organization Students for a Free Tibet. He has not been formally charged through the judicial system and should not be subject to further judicial proceedings. According to the authorities he will be released Aug. 30th and allowed to depart China. The Embassy stated that it continues to advocate on his behalf at the highest levels and monitors his case around the clock. UPDATE James Powderly and 7 other US citizens detained in China have been released and are on their way to the US. They should arrive in Los Angeles around 6 PM Pacific time. Thanks to Senator Clinton, Representative Velazquez, Senator Lautenberg, and Ambassador Randt for advocating for James and his early release. Also big ups to all of our friends that have sent supportive messages and helped in contacting elected officials. Stay tuned for more info from James about his stay at Chong Wen Detention House.