China’s Most Famous Artist Missing After Arrest

Police detained Ai Weiwei Sunday morning.

Weiwei’s wife and assistants were also taken into custody but have since been released, prompting concern over Weiwei’s whereabouts, and about a spreading government crackdown from which apparently no one is immune. Weiwei, who helped design Beijing's Olympic Bird's Nest Stadium, is an outspoken critic of the government, but authorities have generally given him more leeway than the average citizen because of his father’s status as a renowned poet and his own high-profile status. As popular uprisings in the Arab world have captivated international attention, the Chinese government has clamped down on dissent in its own country, rounding up more than 20 well-known dissidents in recent weeks. Five human-rights lawyers have been missing since February.

Image courtesy of Reuters.