Once you’ve tasted freedom, it stays in your heart and no one can take it. Then, you can be more powerful than a whole country.
AI WEIWEIIt’s like the mountains, the ocean and the rivers. It has its own geological forms. Societies cannot be flat. But during change, human rights, human dignity and free speech have to be protected. Otherwise, we’ll be going backward.
More Ai Weiwei Quotes
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I don’t like China. Even today, I still feel I have no emotional relations with this place.
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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.
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People have been longing for this moment, because it symbolises a turning point in China’s relationship with the outside world.
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[Shanghai Biennale] has been my attitude for as long as I’ve been practicing art and other cultural-related activities.
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The freedom of speech is an important yardstick for a society’s level of civilization.
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Overturning police cars is a super-intense workout. It’s probably the only sport I enjoy.
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You can never know what is and what is not powerful, but you can always find out what the powerful people are scared of.
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I think it’s more important to show your work to the public.
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I came back [to Beijing ] because that’s the only time I had an excuse to come back, or otherwise I would never have a reason to come back.
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I’m doing quite a few things now. In one day, I will go to Kassel, Germany, for a documentary project I’ve been preparing for half a year.
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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.
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I’m just bringing them to Kassel to see the art show, and pay their room and board.
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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.
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After I came back [to China], there was still a long period of time when I felt I had nothing to do.
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[Museums] all belongs to the cultural department, which is the biggest cultural department in the world.
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