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As long as I can communicate, I’m not so lonely. If I cannot travel, or do art, or have company, if they take away all my belongings, it doesn’t matter at all.

Ai Weiwei

Imagine one day, the hateful world around you collapses. And it is your attitude, words and actions that put an end to it. Will you be excited?
AI WEIWEI

Action Attitude Collapse Day Imagine One Word World
I wouldn’t say I’ve become more radical: I was born radical.
AI WEIWEI

Become Born More Radical
I loved New York — every inch of it. It was a little bit scary at that time, but still, the excitement was so strong — visually and intellectually. It was like a monster.
AI WEIWEI

Bit Country Excitement Inch Little Scary Strong Time
People have been longing for this moment, because it symbolises a turning point in China’s relationship with the outside world.
AI WEIWEI

Country Longing Moment Outside People Relationship Symbolises Turning World
[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
A historical property has morals and ethics of the society that created it and it can be revived. What I mean is that we can discover new possibilities from the process of dismantling, transforming, and recreating.
AI WEIWEI

Created Ethics Historical Mean Moral Revived Society
If civil society has nobody who protects the law, then what kind of society is that?
AI WEIWEI

Kind Law Nobody Protect Society
This so-called contemporary art is not a form, but a philosophy of society.
AI WEIWEI

Art Called Contemporary Form Philosophy Society
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
You know about the fantasies related to the classics, but there is no real discussion about today’s life and no discussion of the real conditions – which is really sickening.
AI WEIWEI

Classic Condition Discussion Fantasies Related Sickening Today
Just look at the statistics: Each university has tens of thousands of applications for students who want to be in art school, but they can only accept a few hundred.
AI WEIWEI

Application Art Look School Statistic Student Ten Thousand
The society was so different [in China] – it was a feudalistic society. It didn’t come to a point of industrial revolution until twenty years ago.
AI WEIWEI

Come Country Different Feudalistic Industrial Point Revolution Society Twenties Year
A nation like China has become one of the biggest production fields for exporting cheap labor, which also re-questions our history and past, re-questions human desire, and the human illusions of the past.
AI WEIWEI

Biggest Cheap Country Desire Exporting Field Labor Past Production
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
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
As a human being, member of society, you must clearly state your mind. It’s a responsibility. It is the way you identify yourself otherwise you don’t know who you are and why you are here.
AI WEIWEI

Being Clearly Human Mind Responsibility Society State Way
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
In my life, I often make so-called major decisions by very quick, immediate responses.
AI WEIWEI

Decision Immediate Life Major Often Quick Response
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
Even though everybody who looked at me would call me a Chinese artist, that’s the 1980s. New York in the ’80s was not so interesting.
AI WEIWEI

Artist Encouragement New York
I am everywhere and I am nowhere. That’s the beauty of the Internet Age.
AI WEIWEI

Age Beauty Everywhere Internet Nowhere
Creativity is the power to reject the past, to change the status quo, and to seek new potential. Simply put, aside from using one’s imagination – perhaps more importantly – creativity is the power to act.
AI WEIWEI

Aside Creativity Imagination Past Potential Reject Seek Status
I never really read Allen Ginsberg poetry, even though I have a book he gave me.
AI WEIWEI

Across Book Bridge Ginsberg Having Traveler Walk
My definition of art has always been the same. It is about freedom of expression, a new way of communication. It is never about exhibiting in museums or about hanging it on the wall.
AI WEIWEI

Art Communication Definition Expression Freedom Sound Wall Way
Everyone of us is a potential convict.
AI WEIWEI

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

Chinese Clearly Country Government Potential Problem Trying
If artists cannot speak up for human dignity or rights, then who else will do it?
AI WEIWEI

Artist Dignity Else Right Speak Then

As long as I can communicate, I’m not so lonely. If I cannot travel, or do art, or have company, if they take away all my belongings, it doesn’t matter at all.

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As long as I can communicate, I’m not so lonely. If I cannot travel, or do art, or have company, if they take away all my belongings, it doesn’t matter at all.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Ai Weiwei Quotes