( CNN ) -- Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei lost his lawsuit against the Beijing tax bureau in a local court hearing Friday , leaving him still subject to tax evasion charges and more than $ 2 million in fines . The 53-year-old provocateur has been embroiled in a tax evasion case brought by the Chinese authorities last year against his company , Beijing Fake Cultural Development Ltd. Ai Weiwei paints bleak picture of his and China 's future . He told CNN he was denied access to his second court hearing today , as he was to his first court hearing on June 20 . Police called his mobile phone on Thursday afternoon , warning him not to go to court . Police cars were also parked outside his studio and Beijing Chaoyang District Court today , he said , much like his first hearing when tens of police cars surrounded his home , and public buses were rerouted away from the court area . Ai said many other activists were also detained in their homes . Ai told CNN that he would file an appeal to the Beijing No . 2 Intermediate People 's Court . `` We appeal to the court in strict accordance with every law in China . We hope to give them a chance to realize their mistake and make it right . '' `` It 's not about my personal reputation , '' Ai added . `` I do this because we 're citizens of this country , it 's about everyone 's safety and the justice of the law . '' `` It 's my obligation to keep appealing to a higher court , or I 'll be part of the mistakes . '' Ai contends the tax evasion charges are baseless and politically-motivated . In a characteristic ironic twist , Ai is hoping to get his day in court in other ways . In November , the authorities demanded he pay RMB 15 million ( US $ 2.4 million ) in back taxes and fines within two weeks . Tens of thousands of supporters donated more than RMB 9 million ( US $ 1 million ) to help him pay the bill , some even throwing RMB100 notes folded into paper airplanes over the gate of his house . Ai used the donations to post a payment guarantee of the invoice in order to file a lawsuit against the local tax bureau to protest the charges . Ai told CNN that he issued 13,000 IOUs during the donation process for those willing to accept them . As he will now be unable to repay the IOUs , the artist says he is urging the holders of the IOUs to sue him , so that he will forced to be in court `` for the next twenty years . '' According to Chinese law , defendants are required to show up in court . The outspoken artist , blogger , documentary filmmaker , and architect was on his way to Hong Kong in April 2011 when he was taken into custody at Beijing 's international airport and detained for 81 days amid a government crackdown on political activists . Ai 's studio in Beijing was raided , and his wife and several employees were taken into custody for questioning . The government campaign was attributed to fears of a potential Arab-Spring-style uprising , following online calls for a `` Jasmine Revolution . '' How Ai Weiwei became an Internet master . Seven weeks after Ai was taken into custody , state news agency Xinhua reported that Beijing police said his company , Beijing Fake Cultural Development Ltd. , evaded a `` huge amount of taxes '' and `` intentionally destroyed accounting documents . '' He was released on probation the following June and subjected to severe restrictions on his movements . Ai was forbidden to speak to the media or post on his Twitter account about his detainment . His phone was tapped , his e-mails were checked , and he had to report his appointments with other people to the police . Ai Weiwei : Every sentence I say is monitored .
Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei lost appeal against tax fraud charges in the court Friday . Ai said he was denied access to court documents , as he was to first hearing on June 20 . Ai said he would appeal court 's decision . Ai contends charges are baseless and politically - motivated .