WeiweiCamWeiweiCam is a self-surveillance project by artist Ai Weiwei, in China, that went live on April 3, 2012, exactly one year after the artist's detention by Chinese officials at Beijing Airport.[1] At least fifteen surveillance cameras monitor his house in Beijing[2] which, according to Ai, makes it the most-watched spot of the city.[3] DescriptionHe described his decision to put himself under further surveillance as a symbolic way to increase transparency in the Chinese government.[4] WeiweiCam consisted of four webcams that sent a live 24-hour feed publicly viewable from the website weiweicam.com.[5] 46 hours after the site went live Ai Weiwei was instructed to shut down WeiweiCam by Chinese authorities.[6][7] Reception and legacyDuring the time weiweicam.com was live it received 5.2 million views.[8] WeiweiCam was included in "What We Watch", an exhibition on net art and surveillance, at COFAspace Gallery, UNSW College of Fine Arts.[9][10] Until June 30, 2013, WeiweiCam was seen at the Kunstpalais Erlangen, Germany. In the context of the exhibition "Freedom!" the visitors can contact the artist directly via Twitter. See alsoReferences
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