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Somehow, we [ Tan Dun and director Chen Kaige] were all privileged at the time; we could be outside of China. But at the moment, we had no sense of what the future was going to be like.

Ai Weiwei

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

Censorship Forward Hopeless Insulting Self Timidity Way
Man has a tendency to try to give clear reasons to be rational, but often you can see how all those reasons are not convincing and turn out to be a big nonsense.
AI WEIWEI

Clear Giving Man Often Rational Reaction Reason Tendency Trying
We move so fast that memory is something we can only grasp
AI WEIWEI

Grasp Memories Move Moving Something
You don’t have to march on Tiananmen, but you do have to be clear-minded, to find your own means of expression.
AI WEIWEI

Clear Expression March Mean Minded Own Tiananmen
I think U.S. and China is a big opportunity, to be seen as partner or some kind of strategic partner maybe. But those kind of powers have a way of getting too big, then we’ll have competition.
AI WEIWEI

Country Opportunity Partner Strategic Strong Winning
You start to see the society, how it functions, how it works. Then you have a lot of criticism about how it works.
AI WEIWEI

Criticism Function Money Society Star Turn Work
New York has given me a lot, but I still don’t consider it home.
AI WEIWEI

Country Given Home
I want people to see their own power.
AI WEIWEI

Own People Power Want
I think of art as coming from daily life, daily experience. I think it’s very important not to have it become work for some kind of elite circle.
AI WEIWEI

Art Circle Coming Experience Important Thinking Work
Civilization has evolved toward more acceptance, understanding and tolerance of global thinking. If we accept differences, our creativity booms. It makes life much more colorful.
AI WEIWEI

Acceptance Civilization Creativity Evolved Global Thinking Tolerance Understanding
When human beings are scared and feel everything is exposed to the government, we will censor ourselves from free thinking. That’s dangerous for human development.
AI WEIWEI

Censor Development Everything Exposed Feel Government Ourselves Scared Thinking
The IT people who have made such an effort to know and understand computer technology. They are frustrated that you cannot use Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in China. They are the first to recognize that the situation is terrible.
AI WEIWEI

Computer Effort People Technology Understand
They see how dramatic U.S. has to be put this kind of shame on its own – cannot handle the situation. Or show such a difficulty with this liberal ideas. Men or women created equal. And to defend those very essential ideas.
AI WEIWEI

Defend Difficulty Dramatic Handle Idea Liberal Men Women Shame Show
The freedom of speech is an important yardstick for a society’s level of civilization.
AI WEIWEI

Civilization Freedom Important Level Society Speech
Say what you say plainly, and then take responsibility for it.
AI WEIWEI

Plainly Responsibility Responsible Taking
Hopefully, other successes aren’t like me. It carries much more meaning to other people; my success story is irrelevant. It doesn’t make any sense.
AI WEIWEI

Carries Hopefully Irrelevant Like More People Stories Story Success Successes

Somehow, we [ Tan Dun and director Chen Kaige] were all privileged at the time; we could be outside of China. But at the moment, we had no sense of what the future was going to be like.

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Somehow, we [ Tan Dun and director Chen Kaige] were all privileged at the time; we could be outside of China. But at the moment, we had no sense of what the future was going to be like.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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