Chinese authorities began demolishing one of Ai Weiwei s Beijing studios without warning, the dissident artist said on social media this weekend.

Ai, a longtime political critic who now lives in Berlin, said the building had been in use since 2006. In a series of Instagram videos , he appeared to mourn the loss of the space, later telling NPR demolition had begun with no caution taken .

Works were damaged due to the unannounced attack on the studio, Ai told the outlet. However, compared to the memories which have been lost, compared to a society which has never established trust in the social order, a trust in the rule of law, or a trust in any kind of unity in defending the rights of its people, what has been lost at my studio is insignificant, and I dont even care.