1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows: A Memoir

　　在這部廣受期待的回憶錄中，艾未未訴說了他的父親──中國詩人艾青跌宕的一生，與他自己的人生與藝術之路，為這個拒絕記憶、失去自由的國家，留下最真實的紀錄。

　　艾青是中國最知名的詩人之一，曾與毛澤東關係良好，卻在文革期間被打為右派，與家人被流放至荒涼的北疆。艾未未回憶自己在此時期經歷的童年時光，以及其後離開家人、前往美國攻讀藝術的艱難抉擇。透過坦誠而幽默的文字，他詳述自己返回中國後的日子，以及成為知名藝術家、人權倡議者的歷程，並自剖生活在極權國度，是如何影響了他的藝術創作。

　　如今，他的雕塑和裝置藝術作品，已吸引全球超過百萬名觀眾欣賞，他的建築成就包含協助設計北京奧運主場館「鳥巢」。而他對中國現況的直言不諱，則使他成為中國政府的眼中釘，並最終使他在2011年在未遭受任何正式指控的狀況下，被秘密監禁長達81天。

　　這部作品，是他於被監禁期間，在內心對父親與兒子許下的承諾。他下定決心，寫下發生在父親與他身上的事，期望讓兒子能留下關於祖父和父親的記憶，並了解這兩個世代的人，為追尋自由付出了何種代價。

　　這部撼動人心的回憶錄，不僅讓我們得以深入了解那些塑造了現代中國的力量，更是對保護言論自由的急迫性，最切身而令人警悟的提醒。(文/博客來編譯)

　　In his widely anticipated memoir, “one of the most important artists working in the world today” (Financial Times) tells a century-long epic tale of China through the story of his own extraordinary life and the legacy of his father, the nation’s most celebrated poet.
 
　　“An impassioned testament to the enduring powers of art—to challenge the state and the status quo, to affirm essential and inconvenient truths, and to assert the indispensable agency of imagination and will in the face of political repression.”—Michiko Kakutani

　　Hailed as “an eloquent and seemingly unsilenceable voice of freedom” by The New York Times, Ai Weiwei has written a sweeping memoir that presents a remarkable history of China over the last hundred years while also illuminating his artistic process.

　　Once an intimate of Mao Zedong and the nation’s most celebrated poet, Ai Weiwei’s father, Ai Qing, was branded a rightist during the Cultural Revolution, and he and his family were banished to a desolate place known as “Little Siberia,” where Ai Qing was sentenced to hard labor cleaning public toilets. Ai Weiwei recounts his childhood in exile, and his difficult decision to leave his family to study art in America, where he befriended Allen Ginsberg and was inspired by Andy Warhol. With candor and wit, he details his return to China and his rise from artistic unknown to art world superstar and international human rights activist—and how his work has been shaped by living under a totalitarian regime.

　　Ai Weiwei’s sculptures and installations have been viewed by millions around the globe, and his architectural achievements include helping to design the iconic Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium in Beijing. His political activism has long made him a target of the Chinese authorities, which culminated in months of secret detention without charge in 2011. Here, for the first time, Ai Weiwei explores the origins of his exceptional creativity and passionate political beliefs through his life story and that of his father, whose creativity was stifled.

　　At once ambitious and intimate, 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows offers a deep understanding of the myriad forces that have shaped modern China, and serves as a timely reminder of the urgent need to protect freedom of expression.