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I curated this show [Shanghai Biennale ], I was by no means trying to shock people or be controversial.

Ai Weiwei

It’s very essential values that we all have to protect. But in Chinese society, people are giving up on protecting these values.
AI WEIWEI

Country Essential Giving People Protect Protecting Society Value
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
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.
AI WEIWEI

Artist Forced Giving Opinion Say Something
My definition of art has always been the same. It is about freedom of expression. I don’t think anybody can separate art from politics. The intention to separate [the two] is itself a very political intention.
AI WEIWEI

Anybody Art Definition Expression Freedom Same Separate Thinking
I never felt like a Chinese citizen because I was pushed away at a very young age. My father, a writer, was a national enemy of the Communist Party. He was forbidden to write for 20 years.
AI WEIWEI

Citizen Father Party Pushed Writer Writing Young
I don’t think China has professional museums – not in the past, present, or near future.
AI WEIWEI

Country Future Museum Past Present Professional Thinking
They lack any ability to sense what is beautiful or what is proper. They can be learned and skillful, but they lack the ability to make their own free judgment. It is really sad to see young adults of 20, 25 years who were never taught to make their own decisions.
AI WEIWEI

Ability Adult Beautiful Decision Judgement Lack Learned Proper Skillful Taught Young
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

Country Director Future Going Moment Outside Priilied Somehow Time
Your own acts tell the world who you are and what kind of society you think it should be.
AI WEIWEI

Act Change Chinese Kind Society Tell Thinking World
Censorship is saying: “I’m the one who says the last sentence. Whatever you say, the conclusion is mine.” But the internet is like a tree that is growing.
AI WEIWEI

Conclusion Mine People Quiet Saying Sentence Tree Voice
The so-called culture nowadays is only a fake one with a superficial front. It is an empty lie.
AI WEIWEI

Culture Empty Fake Lie Lying Nowadays
I don’t think I was very structured in that society and I don’t really believe in personal success, which most Americans believe in.
AI WEIWEI

Believe Country Personal Structured Success Thinking
It is not an easy job to govern China, I am aware of that. There are crises and emergencies all the time, we might not even be aware of some. But I am afraid we’ll have to wait and observe precisely what the government is up to.
AI WEIWEI

Crises Easy Emergencies Government Job Time Waiting
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.
AI WEIWEI

Apply Artwork Blog Country Participated Passport
Warhol influenced me because of his writing. If I had never read his writings and interviews, I would never have understood his work.
AI WEIWEI

Influence Interview Understood Warhol Work Writing
Dictatorship is a story about death of others who turn out to be you coincidently.
AI WEIWEI

Coincidently Death Dictatorship Stories Story Turn

I curated this show [Shanghai Biennale ], I was by no means trying to shock people or be controversial.

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I curated this show [Shanghai Biennale ], I was by no means trying to shock people or be controversial.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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