4 Controversial Artists Who Challenge Their Governments
<p>Art has played a major part in stirring up and supporting revolutions. As governments scramble to retract freedom of speech and suppress criticism, artists react with a fearless intensity.</p>
<p>Often their artworks cause governments to arrest and imprison them for years at a time…</p>
<p>And yet, rebellion remains.</p>
<h1>Ai WeiWei, China</h1>
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<p>“It’s powerful only because someone thinks it’s powerful and invests value in the object.” — Ai Weiwei</p>
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<p>Ai WeiWei is a Beijing-born artist who’s spent his entire life creating controversial art pieces that speak out about human rights and government policy in China. After studying abroad in the 90’s, he returned to China and started blogging on a popular platform called Wiebo from 2005 to 2009 with a mix of “scathing social commentary, criticism of government policy, thoughts on art and architecture, and autobiographical writings.” Later, he switched to Twitter, claiming to spend 8 hours online every day.</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/demptyspace/4-controversial-artists-who-challenge-their-governments-9be399da2486"><strong>Learn More</strong></a></p>