Chinese Artist Responsible for NW Labs Installation Detained

Chinese government officials recently detained Ai Weiwei, a popular artist and critic of the Chinese government whose latest work—a large installation called "Untitled"—is set to be unveiled at Northwest Labs next week. Police also detained friends and family members of Weiwei and performed a raid on the artist's studio. His arrest comes as just one part of what New Yorker writer Evan Rosnos deems  "the most intense crackdown on expression in years."

Weiwei's latest piece criticizes the Chinese government in the wake of the Sichuan Province earthquake of May 2008, which resulted in a disproportionately high mortality rate of schoolchildren, due in large part to poorly constructed school buildings. The piece uses 5,335 backpacks to commemorate the deceased and will be open to the public this Friday.

A profile of Ai Weiwei and his volatile history with the Chinese government can be found at The New York Times.