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Measuring national prestige by gold medals is like using Viagra to judge the potency of a man.

Ai Weiwei

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Ai Weiwei
Age: 67
Born: 1957
Born: May 18
Architect
Consultant
Contemporary Artist
Designer
Film Director
Human Rights Activist
Painter
Photographer
Sculptor
Social Activist
Peking
Wei-wei Ai
Weiwei Ai
Ai Wei Wei
Men
Measuring
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Prestige
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Viagra
Judging
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Medals

More quotes by Ai Weiwei

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Beijing is constructing a 100,000 m2 modern art museum, yet it will not feature any of my work.
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Say what you say plainly, and then take responsibility for it.
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For artists and intellectuals today, what is most needed is to be clear about social responsibility, because that is what most people automatically give up. Just to protect yourself as an individual is very political. You don't have to march on Tiananmen, but you do have to be clear-minded, to find your own means of expression.
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All the auction houses care about is the selling of luxury goods.
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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.
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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.
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Overturning police cars is a super-intense workout. It’s probably the only sport I enjoy.
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There is no media freedom in China. As a result, the society is corrupt and lacks productivity. It is unable to adjust itself for progress. This will lead to the country's eventual downfall.
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Choices after waking up: To be true or to lie? To take action or be brainwashed? To be free or be jailed?
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Everyone thinks the Chinese government selected me. Never ever. I was selected by Herzog and de Meuron.
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The rest of the world understands little about China's changes and the possibilities and crises that come with them.
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I think art certainly is the vehicle for us to develop any new ideas, to be creative, to extend our imagination, to change the current conditions.
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I don't think China has professional museums - not in the past, present, or near future.
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China and the U.S. are two societies with very different attitudes towards opinion and criticism. In China, I am constantly under surveillance. Even my slightest, most innocuous move can - and often is - censored by Chinese authorities.
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You only have temporary curiosity, amusement, and challenges, but that does not necessarily mean you are really convinced that it's necessary or that it's not even worth to do it. It's just a way you have to set up some kind of activities to follow your instincts or your curiosities.
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The IT people who have made such an effort to know and understand computer technology. They are frustrated that you cannot use Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in China. They are the first to recognize that the situation is terrible.
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I call on people to be 'obsessed citizens,' forever questioning and asking for accountability. That's the only chance we have today of a healthy and happy life.
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The freedom of speech is an important yardstick for a society's level of civilization.
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Without freedom of speech, there is no modern world, just a barbaric one.
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I don't think China should care if this crazy old guy should have a show here or not. You have so many museums in the West, and so many shows, you need somebody to show the work, otherwise it's empty.
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