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I'm not a writer, but today I think you have to be everything. As an artist you have an obligation to let people know what is on your mind and why you're doing this.

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
Mind
Think
Thinking
People
Obligation
Writer
Artist
Today
Everything

More quotes by Ai Weiwei

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Because Chinese art is booming, it legitimizes this profession.
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My understanding of Chinese history is limited. So far, I have only scratched its surface I wish I could find out more.
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My angst and my insecurity reflect the state's angst and insecurity. The state is scared too.
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You're still being looked at as somebody who - it's a very complicated issue.
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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.
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When I first got into the first-year study after the Cultural Revolution, got into the same school with this group, I wasn't conscious of the so-called Fifth Generation. I didn't like that kind of study condition because there's no real, true education there.
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When you have strict censorship of the internet, young students cannot receive a full education. Their view of the world is imbalanced. There can be no true discussion of the issues.
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Today, we jump into this globalization of the economy and the internet age.
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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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Choices after waking up: To be true or to lie? To take action or be brainwashed? To be free or be jailed?
Ai Weiwei
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Historically, China is not a nation of sportsmen. We traditionally put more emphasis on being close to nature than pushing endlessly to excel. A philosophy that values tranquil contemplation of the landscape cannot easily be adapted to the Olympic slogan of 'higher, stronger, faster.'
Ai Weiwei
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New York was not a romantic city at [80th]. Nobody knows who you are and you don't have to care about anybody else. It's a very cold city, I should say.
Ai Weiwei
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I don't think it's worth discussing new directions in the context of Chinese art - there were no old directions, either. Chinese art has never had any clear orientation.
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The art always wins. Anything can happen to me, but the art will stay.
Ai Weiwei
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Artists are the worst [people]. They are selfish, self-centred they don't care what happens.
Ai Weiwei
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New York has given me a lot, but I still don't consider it home.
Ai Weiwei
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During the days in detention, I thought most about the moon.
Ai Weiwei
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...photographs are facts, but not necessarily true... The present always surpasses the past, and the future will not care about today.
Ai Weiwei
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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.
Ai Weiwei
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Politics is like air and water. And you know if there is bad politics. Everyone is polluted. Everyone is unhealthy. See the people walking on the street: how they act.
Ai Weiwei