Ai Weiwei Quotes

I believe [the architecture firm] Herzog and de Meuron and our collaboration made the product the best it could be.

I grew up in a desert, which has no kind of imagination.

The fantasy we had with pearls was always so luxurious and unique with a kind of rareness.

We grew up in a very material-lacking socialist society, but today China is a capitalist society. It's very materialistic. It's full of desire and luxury goods.

For years, I refused to go to any openings, not even my own.

[Museums] all belongs to the cultural department, which is the biggest cultural department in the world.

Many people are going to use [Beijing National Stadium], which makes it more meaningful. If we don't design it, somebody else has to design it.

If I really have nothing to do, I just watch my cats, take some photos, and go back to my personal blog.

I think the pearls - one is a necklace, and another you have five hundred pounds of pearls, which may be one million pearls in a bowl - really show a kind of [society] condition.

Beijing is constructing a 100,000 m2 modern art museum, yet it will not feature any of my work.

So-called Chinese art and culture is under control of the Party. They exist to serve the official agenda. I call it fake art and culture.

Our lives are bound by physical limits, familial ties, political conditions, and geographical restrictions. Individual freedom takes us beyond them all.

Modern Chinese culture is weak and lackluster.

My understanding of Chinese history is limited. So far, I have only scratched its surface; I wish I could find out more.

All movies in China are censored. Out of 600 movies produced in China, only 60 are allowed to show in theatres.

China has a rich history that has spanned millennia. It consists of the histories of many nations and regions.

The demand for individual freedom leads us to different realms, and it enables us to participate in social events.

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.

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.

The biggest obstacle in interacting with China is the difference in perspectives about basic values. These include issues such as human rights, the concept of law and constitution.

My musician friends are banned from playing concerts in China because they share the same views as I do. My name cannot appear on the web, because my opinion is different from the Party.

Because Great Britain has self-confidence, it doesn't need a monumental Olympics.

Once you've tasted freedom, it stays in your heart...

I'm a free man now, except I cannot leave China. You know, I have no desire to travel. I have so many things to do; I cannot finish them now.

My work is always a ready-made... cultural, political, or social, and also it could be art - to make people re-look at what we have done, its original position, to create new possibilities.

My situation gives me certain ideas about beauty or the excitement of life, but that doesn't mean other people can necessarily appreciate it.

My mother became much older when I came out (ed's note: of detention). She had problems with her hearing and high blood pressure. But they still support me.

My childhood was quite extreme. Sometimes I was so weak I could not stand up. But now I am so strong. Life is unpredictable

It doesn't matter where I am - China will stay in me. I don't know how far I can still walk on this road and what is the limit.

A city is a place that can offer maximum freedom. Otherwise it’s incomplete.

Dont retreat. Retweet!

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.

I'm most embarrassed at my art shows, even though I don't show it.

I'm always interested in people who are not orientated in art circles to become part of it.

No matter what happens, nothing can prevent the historical process by which society demands freedom and democracy.

All the auction houses care about is the selling of luxury goods.

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.

It's always nice to share your energy with young people, the people who might not have any skills but are simply willing to be a part of it.

Twitter is the people’s tool, the tool of the ordinary people, people who have no other resources.

If Shakespeare were alive today, he might be writing on Twitter.

Cities really are mental conditions. Beijing is a nightmare. A constant nightmare.

I always admire writers. My father was a writer, a poet. I always admire people who can clearly state their mind.

Twitter is most suitable for me. In the Chinese language, 140 characters is a novella.

Art needs to stand for something.

Artists are the worst [people]. They are selfish, self-centred; they don't care what happens.

Only with the Internet can a peasant I have never met hear my voice and I can learn what's on his mind. A fairy tale has come true.

In an environment without public platform nor protection, the individual is the most powerful and most responsible.

The world is sphere, has no East or West.

Freedom of speech implies the world isn’t defined. It is meaningful when people are allowed to see the world their way.

Art is always about overcoming obstacles between the inner condition and the skill for expression.