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If my art has nothing to do with people's pain and sorrow, what is 'art' for?

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
Sorrow
Pain
Art
Nothing
People

More quotes by Ai Weiwei

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Warhol came from an ordinary family and he had a profound understanding about capitalism and material culture. He was probably one of the few Western artists - or artists from the United States - that could be considered a true product of his time and brought out that kind of spirit of the culture.
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For me, it is OK as long as I can breathe, as long as my heart is pumping, as long as I can express myself.
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New York is a city where you're so alone, you're an individual, you can disappear. You can make something happen. But it's very different to make something happen in the art world.
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You see so many people doing quite nice and respectful work, but nobody like Warhol. Warhol is outstanding. I think he has a value that is far from fully understood. He's very special for younger generations.
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I suddenly realized I was getting ten opening notes a day on my mobile phone, more than when I was in New York. But this is China, where nothing is surprising.
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I don't belong to a working system. They only select people if you belong to one so you can be controlled.
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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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China spends a lot of resources and effort on gaining soft power over culture. The hope is that it can be the last lifeline for the Party's survival. Obviously, the idea will fail.
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Democracy, material wealth, and universal education are the soil upon which modernism exists.
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Every day I'm learning something new from the practice. It's very rewarding.
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Being an artist is more of a mindset, a way of seeing things it is no longer so much about producing something.
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I think we cannot have a double standard. We cannot see our art as different from the reality. We cannot use two different sets of judgment.
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I don't think there is a distinct change, because in the West I'm not a person who can serve his purpose.
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To give a price to an artwork, no matter how high or low, is always absurd. It's not something that can be measured by money or by certain numbers.
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Life is art. Art is life. I never separate it.
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The people who control culture in China have no culture.
Ai Weiwei
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I'm most embarrassed at my art shows, even though I don't show it.
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Imagine one day, the hateful world around you collapses. And it is your attitude, words and actions that put an end to it. Will you be excited?
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I don't think China has professional museums - not in the past, present, or near future.
Ai Weiwei
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As a total activity - I practice curating, art, architecture, writing, and publishing all together. I still act as a living creature.
Ai Weiwei