Yesterday we told you how Chinese artist Ai Weiwei had set up a live feed from his studio but today he’s apparently been ordered to turn off the cameras.

Artist and activist Weiwei has long been a position of controversy and yesterday he opened his world up to the eyes of the world by installing four web cams in his studio so people could watch him 24/7. However today the cameras have been turned off after authorities in China who have kept an eye on him for years ordered him to get rid of them.

The cameras were switched on to mark the one year anniversary that Weiwei seemingly disappeared for 81 days. It turned out that he had been held at Beijing airport by officials and questioned apparently over tax evasion. At the same time as Weiwei was being questioned a number of other activists seemed to ‘disappear’ leading to speculation that he was being questioned over his stands against the Chinese government.

Speaking of the fact he’s been asked to turn them off Weiwei said, ‘There was no clear explanation, but there was no clear explanation of why I was detained for 81 days, so it would be ridiculous to ask them. When I turned the cameras on myself and on to my privacy – which is exactly what they did to me when I was in detention – they got scared and didn’t know how to handle it.’

Weiwei had originally turned the cameras on so that those concerned about his whereabouts would always know where he was and what he was doing.

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