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I always want people to be confused, to be shocked or realize something later.

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
Realize
Realizing
Something
Always
People
Shocked
Shock
Confused
Later

More quotes by Ai Weiwei

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Individual that means he has his own special way to communicate, which creates the form of him. In the information age, this expression and communication has become so different.
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China partially wants to become part of the world. By hosting the Olympics and the Expo, they made a big effort to tell people: Look, we are the same. They want to be accepted by the international community.
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Freedom of speech implies the world isn’t defined. It is meaningful when people are allowed to see the world their way.
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To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is the reason.
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I also doubt a man can give really clear reasons for anything.
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I think China is laughing about the results of the presidential elections. China, Russia, they all laugh about it. They see how dramatic U.S. has to be put this kind of shame on its own - cannot handle the situation. Or show such a difficulty with this liberal ideas. Men or women created equal. And to defend those very essential ideas.
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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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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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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. That's why the country can't face up to open competition - unless it resorts to measures like North Korea.
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Art needs to stand for something.
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My childhood was quite extreme. Sometimes I was so weak I could not stand up. But now I am so strong. Life is unpredictable
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Maybe being powerful means to be fragile.
Ai Weiwei
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I lived there [ in New York City] as an artist, but never as a Chinese artist.
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Artists are the worst [people]. They are selfish, self-centred they don't care what happens.
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I never think any place is better than others.
Ai Weiwei
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I think everybody deserves freedom. Freedom is such an abstract word, but it's all we need.
Ai Weiwei
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Creativity is the power to reject the past, to change the status quo, and to seek new potential. Simply put, aside from using one's imagination - perhaps more importantly - creativity is the power to act.
Ai Weiwei
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If it's possible, I will have some noodles in the morning and start talking to people, start to think about a few things in my head - the project or a few ideas which are not finished or if there are possible directions and what will lead into another game. It's always like setting up some kind of game you can continuously play.
Ai Weiwei
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[Museums] all belongs to the cultural department, which is the biggest cultural department in the world.
Ai Weiwei
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This is a very general understanding of art in China, that being an artist can make you money and turn you into a star.
Ai Weiwei