Ai Weiwei Quotes
- All Quotes
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The great success of this system is that it makes the general public afraid of taking responsibility, afraid of taking a position or giving a definite answer, or even of making mistakes.
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I came to art because I wanted to escape the other regulations of the society. The whole society is so political. But the irony is that my art becomes more and more political.
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The individual under this kind of life, with no rights, has absolutely no power in this land. How can they even ask you for creativity? Or imagination, or courage or passion?
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I lost all connection with the outside world and was immersed in a world of darkness. I was scared that my existence would fade silently. No one knew where I was, and no one would ever know. I was just like a small soybean-once fallen to the ground, it rolls into a crack in the corner. Being unable to make any sounds, it will forever be forgotten.
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Art is not an end but a beginning.
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Because of the economic crisis, China and the United States are bound together. This is a totally new phenomenon, and nobody will fight for ideology anymore. It’s all about business.
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I don’t have this concept that separates my art from my daily life. They are one thing to me. They are always one. How do you find the way to express yourself and how to communicate with others?
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I’m not sure I’m good at art, but I find an escape in it.
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One of the reasons religions are widely accepted is spiritual laziness and its resulting fear.
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They the government cannot stop people from communicating freely, to get information and to express themselves. When they do that, this nation is not a right place to live. They sacrifice generations of people’s opportunities. This is a crime.
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I often ask myself if I am afraid of being detained again. I love freedom as much as anybody else, maybe more than most. But it is a tragedy to live your life in fear. It is worse than actually losing your freedom.
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Creativity is part of human nature. It can only be untaught.
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The Internet is uncontrollable. And if the Internet is uncontrollable, freedom will win. It’s as simple as that.
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Not an inch of the land belongs to you, but every inch could easily imprison you.
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I want to prove that the system is not working. . . . . You can’t simply say that the system is not working. You have to work through it
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China might seem quite successful in its controls, but it has only raised the water level. It’s like building a dam: it thinks there is more water so it will build higher. But every drop of water is still in there. It doesn’t understand how to let the pressure out. It builds up a way to maintain control and push the problem to the next generation.
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To protect the right of expression is the central part of an artist’s activity. . . . . In China many essential rights are lacking, and I wanted to remind people of this.
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A city is a place that can offer maximum freedom. Otherwise it’s incomplete.
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To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.
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During the days in detention, I thought most about the moon.
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Your own acts tell the world who you are and what kind of society you think it should be.
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Tips on surviving the regime: Respect yourself and speak for others. Do one small thing every day to prove the existence of justice.
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But censorship by itself doesn’t work. It is, as Mao said, about the pen and the gun.
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When the mayor of Nagoya denies the Nanjing Massacre, he gets blacklisted by the city of Nanjing. When the government of Sichuan denies 'tofu dregs' construction which caused the collapse of several schools, they get blacklisted by me.