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To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.

Ai Weiwei

Everyone wants an iPhone, but it would be impossible to design an iPhone in China because it’s not a product; it’s an understanding of human nature.
AI WEIWEI

Country Design Everyone iPhone Product Understanding Want
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
Each year, more people want to become artists.
AI WEIWEI

Artist People Year
I think it’s quite narrow-minded. There wasn’t much encouragement or opportunities for any artist – not just Chinese artists.
AI WEIWEI

Artist Country Encouragement Minded Narrow Opportunities Think
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
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
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
It also makes humanity much more safe. If we see pureness somewhere as something to be desired, the trouble starts.
AI WEIWEI

Desire Humanity Make Pureness Safe Something Trouble
Destroy or build. Crazy or noncrazy. I’m not nostalgic about the old city. I don’t enjoy it that much.
AI WEIWEI

Cities Crazy Destroy Enjoy Much Nostalgic
You have so many museums in the West, and so many shows, you need somebody to show the work, otherwise it’s empty.
AI WEIWEI

Empty Many Museum Need Otherwise Show Somebody West Work
I have people working together, doing different things: architecture, art installation, photography, publishing, and curatorial works and design.
AI WEIWEI

Architecture Art Installation People Photography Publishing Together Working
Self-censorship is insulting to the self. Timidity is a hopeless way forward.
AI WEIWEI

Censorship Forward Hopeless Insulting Self Timidity Way
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
I was in the most restricted prison in China, the most tough. The design of the prison is modeled for internal crimes of the Communist party, so it’s like a mafia family’s law. It’s independent to the law this nation openly applies.
AI WEIWEI

Country Crime Independent Internal Modeled Most Party Prison Restricted Year
In my case, I was stuck there for quite a while. New York is large enough to be a very abstract city, so nobody cares.
AI WEIWEI

Abstract Care City Country Enough Large Nobody Quite Stuck
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

To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.

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To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.

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Popular Authors

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