“The so-called culture nowadays is only a fake one with a superficial front. It is an empty lie.”

I think China is laughing about the results of the presidential elections. China, Russia, they all laugh about it.

Say what you say plainly, and then take responsibility for it.

My typical day is I wake up and appreciate that I can still wake up.

I am very much interested in the so-called useless object. I mean, it takes perfect craftsmanship, beautiful material carefully measured and crafted, but at the same time it’s really useless.

We have to give our opinion, we have to say something, or we are a part of it. As an artist I am forced to say something.

Your own acts tell the world who you are and what kind of society you think it should be.

I think art certainly is the vehicle for us to develop any new ideas, to be creative, to extend our imagination, to change the current conditions.

Maybe being powerful means to be fragile.

Life is art. Art is life. I never separate it. I don’t feel that much anger. I equally have a lot of joy.

Any individual can contribute its own belief. And our society or even our government are made by the people. The people would have the final voice, but it requires each individual to act. If we don’t act, then the result is very clear.

I saw [Allen Ginsberg] more as an old man who liked poetry and who had a lot of physical and emotional problems. We liked our time together.

These are nonviolent people who have lost their freedom simply because they expressed their ideas….In truth, they are heroes of our time.

I will bring 1,001 Chinese to participate as my artwork there – any Chinese who is a Chinese passport holder and over eighteen years old could apply through my blog.

Self-censorship is insulting to the self. Timidity is a hopeless way forward.

I don’t think my father had a direct influence on me, but I do think, more or less, I was influenced by his independent individualism.

Chinese government is very clearly losing power in every aspect, but trying to fix up all the problems or potential problems.

Moral values, and a culture and a religion, maintaining these values are far better than laws and regulations.

Not everyone wants to live forever, but every culture has always desired immortality in one way or another.

You can’t have a decent food culture without a decent coffee culture: the two things grow up together.

We wanted to make fun of that fear-based culture we’ve been plunged into. And Halloweens the perfect metaphor for fear.

The outcome of this culture of discrimination is that young people are routinely denied the roles in society they can, should, and need to be occupying.

Quality of life lies in knowledge, in culture. Values are what constitute true quality of life, the supreme quality of life, even above food, shelter and clothing.

I do not conceive of any manifestation of culture, of science, of art, as purposes in themselves. I think the purpose of science and culture is man.

You had to use it to fight apartheid & some of us resisted that in the end, you recognize that you are facing a government that has no scruples about using culture & art to oppress you.