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In my life, I often make so-called major decisions by very quick, immediate responses.

Ai Weiwei

We are not on – even just a step away from the most brutal and primitive crudity. To be very crude on those issues, which is always challenges and we always have to look at the situation like a mirror, to draw some understanding.
AI WEIWEI

Always Challenge Crude Issue Mirror Primitive Situation Step Understanding
Everyone thinks the Chinese government selected me. Never ever. I was selected by Herzog and de Meuron.
AI WEIWEI

Chinese Ever Government never Selected Thinking
In my life, I often make so-called major decisions by very quick, immediate responses.
AI WEIWEI

Decision Immediate Life Major Often Quick Response
I’m an artist who is always looking for what is possible. I’m always looking to extend the boundaries.
AI WEIWEI

Artist Boundaries Extend Looking Possible
I have to respect my life, and free expression is part of my life. I can never really silence myself.
AI WEIWEI

Expression Free Respect Silence
It’s the place they take you before they give you over to the judicial system. You stay there for a year or two and they make you really suffer to confess everything.
AI WEIWEI

Before Confess Everything Judicial Over Place Stay Suffer System
To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.
AI WEIWEI

Express Need Reason Yourself
The leadership knows that you cannot solve the issues of China’s future with the means of the past. The demographic consequences of the one-child policy, the build-up of the welfare state.
AI WEIWEI

Children Country Future Issue Job Know Leadership Mean Solve
Maybe being powerful means to be fragile.
AI WEIWEI

Fragile Mean Powerful Recovery
I don’t think [price] reflects if the work is good or bad.A good artist shouldn’t be nervous about that.
AI WEIWEI

Artist Bad Good Nervous Thinking Reflect
The deadly weapon against totalitarian society is openness – doing everything very openly on the Internet, letting people know every detail, any little development. Once it is out there, everybody can make their own judgement.
AI WEIWEI

Deadly Everything Evil Internet Letting Openness People Thinking Weapon
The importance of elections, transparency, legal procedures, an independent army, and the judicial system is not regarded as highly in China. These core values are the most important evidence of the health of a society, quality of life, and security.
AI WEIWEI

Army Difference Election Importance Independent Judicial System Transparency
I think the pearls – one is a necklace, and another you have five hundred pounds of pearls, which may be one million pearls in a bowl – really show a kind of [society] condition.
AI WEIWEI

Another Five Hundred Million Necklace Pearl Pound Thinking
It is to wonder about the world, to understand the nature of people and, most importantly, to be shared with another, old or young, known or unknown.
AI WEIWEI

Another Importantly Old People Shared Understand Wonder World Young
[Cultural departments] don’t care about culture. Maybe they’re the furthest from the people who understand culture.
AI WEIWEI

Care Culture Furthest Maybe People Understand
Choices after waking up: To be true or to lie? To take action or be brainwashed? To be free or be jailed?
AI WEIWEI

Brainwashed Choice Free Jailed Lying Wake Walking
Even today the borders they’re seeing the physical borders are very different from the political borders. Because all those powers are so connected, and you cannot even see whose interest in what move.
AI WEIWEI

Border Idea Interest Move Own Physical Problem Solving Voter
These folks are creative and ironic, and the government can ultimately not control what is going on in their heads.
AI WEIWEI

Control Creative Folk Government Head Ironic Ultimately
The [China] government has improved in the last years. Of course, the structure is still the same; there’s still a one-party system and strong censorship.
AI WEIWEI

Censorship Government Last Party Stem Strong Year
Democracy, material wealth, and universal education are the soil upon which modernism exists.
AI WEIWEI

Democracy Education Material Soil Universal Wealth
I don’t care if this is a great cultural event or a national symbol. It has nothing to do with me. It deals with the city.
AI WEIWEI

Care City Cultural Event Great National Nothing Seal Symbol
I don’t think there is a distinct change, because in the West I’m not a person who can serve his purpose.
AI WEIWEI

Change Distinct Person Purpose Thinking West
Politics is like air and water. And you know if there is bad politics. Everyone is polluted. Everyone is unhealthy. See the people walking on the street: how they act.
AI WEIWEI

Air Bad Everyone People Politics Polluted Unhealthy Water
I think my stance and my way of life is my most important art.
AI WEIWEI

Art Important Most Stance Thinking Way
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.
AI WEIWEI

Emotion Emotional Man More Old Physical Poetry Problem Together
The freedom of speech is an important yardstick for a society’s level of civilization.
AI WEIWEI

Civilization Freedom Important Level Society Speech
To give a price to an artwork, no matter how high or low, is always absurd. It’s not something that can be measured by money or by certain numbers.
AI WEIWEI

Absurd Always Artwork Giving High Matter Measured Number Price Something

In my life, I often make so-called major decisions by very quick, immediate responses.

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In my life, I often make so-called major decisions by very quick, immediate responses.

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