The misconception of totalitarianism is that freedom can be imprisoned. This is not the case. When you constrain freedom, freedom will take flight and land on a windowsill.
So for too long Americans take liberty as granted. We think we are in the safe hand, the democracy and the liberty, which is not true. And it can be even getting much worse than today.
I think U.S. and China is a big opportunity, to be seen as partner or some kind of strategic partner maybe. But those kind of powers have a way of getting too big, then we’ll have competition.
There isn’t a single Chinese university that can invite me to give a talk. Even though I know there are many students who would like to hear what I have to say.
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.
Nationality started as something natural, but we should not be restrained by the old politics that make up these clear lines. It should have its own way of evolving. In some places, it will evolve slower and in others, faster.
Art should live in the heart of the people. Ordinary people should have the same ability to understand art as anybody else. I don’t think art is elite or mysterious.
A few thousand are to be built in the next few years, all using taxpayer money. But there is no system, no research, no content, no good programs, no good managers.
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.
If we all say the same thing, then I think the government has to listen. But because no one is saying it, I become singled out, even though what I’m saying is common sense.
![Ai Weiwei Quote - [Museums] all belongs to the cultural department, which is the biggest cultural department in the world.](https://minimalistquotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/museums-all-belongs-to-the-cultural-department-whi-683x1024.jpg)
![Ai Weiwei Quote - A lot of the time [in the U.S.], I was thinking about how spending time is always questionable or is always the biggest obstacle in my life.](https://minimalistquotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/a-lot-of-the-time-in-the-u-s-i-was-thinking-about--683x1024.jpg)
![Ai Weiwei Quote - I curated this show [Shanghai Biennale ], I was by no means trying to shock people or be controversial.](https://minimalistquotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/i-curated-this-show-shanghai-biennale-i-was-by-no--683x1024.jpg)
