I am not stupid, you know. Of course I know what I am doing. — NYT

The controversial artist has already received more than 6,000 yuan ($958,000) from more than 22,200 people.

While many have sent money via post and the internet, other have resorted to rather unconventional methods -- folding bank notes into paper planes and throwing them into Ai's garden at night. — cnn.com

It seems unlikely, however, that Mr Ai will be allowed to take up his post in Germany in the near-term. Speaking from his studio in Beijing, he said that he had accepted the position when it was offered two months ago, but that the conditions of his release from prison at the end of June stipulate he has to remain in the Chinese capital. — telegraph.co.uk

Mr Ai has already said he cannot talk to the media, and he is not allowed to leave Beijing without permission.

He is also reportedly banned from using the microblogging site Twitter. His account has been dormant since April. — bbc.co.uk

Chinese artist and government critic Ai Weiwei is to challenge a bill of more than 12m yuan ($1.9m, £1.2m) in unpaid taxes and fines, his wife told the BBC. — bbc.co.uk

Beijing police said they had released the 54-year-old "because of his good attitude in confessing his crimes" and a chronic illness, Xinhua news agency reported. — guardian.co.uk

Forget petitions: art professionals are showing their support for detained Chinese artist Ai Weiwei in increasingly creative ways. Last week, Milwaukee-based Mike Brenner shaved his head into a style reminiscent of Ai's outside the Milwaukee Art Museum as a show of support for the artist, who has been missing for over two months. — artinfo.com

It’s in no country’s interest to have such a renown and creative citizen behind bars. It is particularly awkward for China’s rulers to oppress the man who designed the venue for their coming out party. Moreover, in its quest to climb the economic value chain and provide its millions of new graduates with jobs, China is at a moment where it needs to embrace creativity, to innovate and to develop the arts, entertainment and other high-value sectors. — globalpost.com

FAT Lab member Greg Leuch’s browser plugins have been mainly whimsical (abolishing mentions of folks like Justin Bieber and Charlie Sheen), but now, the developer has gone political with the release of China Blocker. It serves as a protest against the detainment of Chinese artist Ai Weiwei. — mashable.com

Ai’s family said that police had never informed them about the charges before the Xinhua report. Ai’s sister, Gao Ge, said, “Fa-Ke Cultural is not Ai Weiwei’s company, and the police have not met with the company’s legal representative.” According to Hong Kong media Apple Daily, the company is registered and belongs to Ai’s wife, Lu Qing. — Epoch Times

One of Ai Weiwei’s better known works is “Study of Perspective,” a series of first-person photographs in which the artist gives the finger to various landmarks around the world, including the Forbidden City. A Cuban artist recently made a similar gesture, projecting a massive portrait of Mr. Ai along the side of the Chinese consulate building in New York City. — blogs.wsj.com

Kapoor, who dedicated his latest work "Leviathan" to Ai, wrote in The Times: "When governments silence artists it bears witness to their barbarity." — news.yahoo.com

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is alarmed to learn that a journalist at Southern Metropolis Daily newspaper in China is facing punishment after he penned a May 12 editorial that obliquely endorsed the actions of detained artist Ai Weiwei. — scoop.co.nz

The attorney and family friend, Liu Xiaoyuan, said he had met on Monday with Lu Qing and that she said her husband appeared to be in good physical condition. Mr. Ai also asked about the health of his mother and family, he said, but the circumstance of the supervised visit offered no chance to discuss how his captors were treating him or other details of his confinement. — NYTimes.com