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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.

Ai Weiwei

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
They very often just try to cope with their own election, their own popularity, solving the problem or selling the ideas to meet their own voters. By doing that, it creates a great imbalance in terms of making deals or treaty or all those things.
AI WEIWEI

Border Cope Create Deal Election Idea Imbalance Making Meet Political Popularity Selling Solving Voter
These are nonviolent people who have lost their freedom simply because they expressed their ideas….In truth, they are heroes of our time.
AI WEIWEI

Expressed Freedom Hero Idea Lost Nonviolent People Truth
The only way to avoid misunderstanding, war and bloodshed is to defend freedom of expression and to communicate with sincerity, concern and good intentions.
AI WEIWEI

Avoid Belief Carrodes Denies Ignorant Mankind Minded Misunderstanding Narrow Warmth
[Therefore] holding a trial outside the court. I think that is fairness, that is justice, that is a civil society. Otherwise call it an evil society because everything is hidden.
AI WEIWEI

Development Everything Fairness Holding Internet Letting Outside People Trail
Any politician who respects China’s government should tell it openly what is in his heart. It is disrespectful to keep quiet about such issues – both vis-a-vis the government and the people concerned.
AI WEIWEI

Disrespectful Government Heart Issues Openly Politician Respect
If a nation cannot face its past, it has no future.
AI WEIWEI

Face Future Nation Past
If artists cannot speak up for human dignity or rights, then who else will do it?
AI WEIWEI

Artist Dignity Else Right Speak Then
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
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
Paintings can be painted with the left hand, the right hand, someone else’s hand, or many people’s hands. The scale of production is irrelevant to its content.
AI WEIWEI

Content Hand Irrelevant Left Painting Production Scale Someone
Many people are going to use [Beijing National Stadium], which makes it more meaningful. If we don’t design it, somebody else has to design it.
AI WEIWEI

Design Make Meaningful People Use
Dictatorship is a story about death of others who turn out to be you coincidently.
AI WEIWEI

Coincidently Death Dictatorship Stories Story Turn
I grew up in a desert, which has no kind of imagination.
AI WEIWEI

Desert Grew Imagination Kind
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.
AI WEIWEI

Direct Father Independent Influence Thinking
Ordinary people should have the same ability to understand art as anybody else. I don’t think art is elite or mysterious. I don’t think anybody can separate art from politics.
AI WEIWEI

Ability Anybody Elite Else Mysterious Ordinary People Politics Separate Understand
I never think any place is better than others.
AI WEIWEI

Better Place Think Thinking
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 a tendency to become elite rather than to care about the general conditions of the society, which makes me sick. It’s an unbearable condition.
AI WEIWEI

Care Condition General Make People Sick Society Tendency
The jobs for 7 million university graduates every year, the immense corruption: Even some Western governments would have to scramble to find solutions to such problems.
AI WEIWEI

Government Graduate Immense Job Million Problem Scramble Seven Solution
Maybe being powerful means to be fragile.
AI WEIWEI

Fragile Mean Powerful Recovery
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
I think by shattering it we can create a new form, a new way to look at what is valuable – how we decide what is valuable.
AI WEIWEI

Decide Looks New Shattering Thinking Valuable Way
I spend a lot of time talking to journalists.
AI WEIWEI

Journalist Lot Spend Talking Time
We grew up in a very material-lacking socialist society, but today China is a capitalist society. It’s very materialistic. It’s full of desire and luxury goods.
AI WEIWEI

Capitalist Country Desire Grew Lacking Luxury Material Materialistic Socialist Today
I don’t belong to a working system. They only select people if you belong to one so you can be controlled.
AI WEIWEI

Controlled People Select System Working
A clear understanding of such differences will help the rest of the world understand China and all that is happening to the nation.
AI WEIWEI

Clear Country Difference Happening Nation Rest Understand Understanding World

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.

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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.

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Popular Authors

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