The whole Chinese system – not just the political leadership, the military too, the whole power structure, our education system, the whole of society – is suffering from being cut off from the free flow of information.
AI WEIWEII 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.
More Ai Weiwei Quotes
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The museums used to be exhibition halls for government propaganda, and now every city wants to build a museum.
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Any individual can contribute its own belief. And our society or even our government are made by the people. The people would have the final voice, but it requires each individual to act. If we don’t act, then the result is very clear.
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I think optimism is whether you are still exhilarated by life, whether you are curious, whether you still believe there is possibility.
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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.
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If civil society has nobody who protects the law, then what kind of society is that?
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Liberty is about the right to question everything.
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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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How to become a really modern society when today we are so – as a human being, we feel so powerful. We have high technology and a superb way of controlling our life. And at the same time, in many ways we are so primitive.
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Stupidity can win for a moment, but it can never really succeed because the nature of humans is to seek freedom. Rulers can delay that freedom, but they cannot stop it.
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I spent a lot of time standing on street corners [of New York City] talking to local residents. I spent time in bookstores and galleries. But most of the time, I really did not have much to do.
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I think art is a very important weapon to achieve human freedom
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The importance of elections, transparency, legal procedures, an independent army, and the judicial system is not regarded as highly in China. These core values are the most important evidence of the health of a society, quality of life, and security.
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Whenever there is injustice, there is tension. But in China it is very hard to release your anger unless you burn yourself or you jump from a bridge. In a society where there is no freedom of the press, it is difficult for victims to be noticed.
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The art always wins. Anything can happen to me, but the art will stay.
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[Being unique] gives so much privilege to people who can make it, rather than having some moral and aesthetic discussions.
AI WEIWEI