Weiwei Quotes & Sayings

A small act is worth a million thoughts. — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

I have to speak out for people around me who are afraid, who think it is not worth it or who have totally given up hope. So I want to set an example: you can do it and this is okay, to speak out. — Ai Weiwei

Because of the economic crisis, China and the United States are bound together. This is a totally new phenomenon, and nobody will fight for ideology anymore. It's all about business. — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

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

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. — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

This week, the world gathers in Beijing for the 2008 Olympic games. This is the extraordinary moment China has been dreaming of for 100 years. People have been longing for this moment, because it symbolises a turning point in China's relationship with the outside world. — Ai Weiwei

An artwork unable to make people feel uncomfortable or to feel different is not one worth creating. This is the difference between the artist and the fool. — Ai Weiwei

A historical property has morals and ethics of the society that created it and it can be revived. What I mean is that we can discover new possibilities from the process of dismantling, transforming, and recreating. — Ai Weiwei

Beijing's Olympics were very grand - they were trying to throw a party for the world, but the hosts didn't enjoy it. The government didn't care about people's feelings because it was trying to create an image. — Ai Weiwei

I admire Ai Weiwei for his art and his activism. His art is beautiful in form, and in function embodies the principles of populism and social consciousness I aspire to in my own practice. — Shepard Fairey

Now the British are coming. I think Cameron should ask the Chinese government not to make people 'disappear' or to jail them merely because they have different opinions. — Ai Weiwei

We move so fast that memory is something we can only grasp — Ai Weiwei

If artists cannot speak up for human dignity or rights, then who else will do it? — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

The Internet is uncontrollable. And if the Internet is uncontrollable, freedom will win. It's as simple as that. — Ai Weiwei

Choices after waking up: To be true or to lie? To take action or be brainwashed? To be free or be jailed? — Ai Weiwei

You need a purpose to express yourself, but that expression is its own purpose. — Ai Weiwei

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

I think optimism is whether you are still exhilarated by life, whether you are curious, whether you still believe there is possibility. — Ai Weiwei

During the days in detention, I thought most about the moon. — Ai Weiwei

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

The world is not changing if you don't shoulder the burden of responsibility. — Ai Weiwei

When human beings are scared and feel everything is exposed to the government, we will censor ourselves from free thinking. That's dangerous for human development. — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

Censorship is saying: 'I'm the one who says the last sentence. Whatever you say, the conclusion is mine.' But the internet is like a tree that is growing. The people will always have the last word - even if someone has a very weak, quiet voice. Such power will collapse because of a whisper. — Ai Weiwei

For all the tough talk about China during the presidential debates, Romney and Obama evaded any mention of China's suspect human rights record, corruption, and rule of law. By not tackling these controversial topics, the candidates are protecting a strategic partnership with China at the expense of essential human values and beliefs. — Ai Weiwei

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

A nation that has no music and no fairytales is a tragedy. — Ai Weiwei

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

Say what you say plainly, and then take responsibility for it. — Ai Weiwei

Dictatorship is a story about death of others who turn out to be you coincidently. — Ai Weiwei

To work in architecture you are so much involved with society, with politics, with bureaucrats. It's a very complicated process to do large projects. You start to see the society, how it functions, how it works. Then you have a lot of criticism about how it works. — Ai Weiwei

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

It became like a symbolic thing, to be "an artist." After Duchamp, I realized that being an artist is more about a lifestyle and attitude than producing some product. — Ai Weiwei

Being an artist is more of a mindset, a way of seeing things; it is no longer so much about producing something. — Ai Weiwei

In the early 1990s we witnessed the emergence of a revitalized contemporary Chinese art world that began as a reaction against the government-approved Social Realist style. Zhang Xiaogang, Huang Yong Ping, Ai WeiWei, Yue Minjun, and Wang Guangyi were among the first group of artists to establish a movement that became known as Cynical Realism. — Arne Glimcher

This so-called contemporary art is not a form, but a philosophy of society, — Ai Weiwei

I was in the most restricted prison in China, the most tough. The design of the prison is modeled for internal crimes of the Communist party, so it's like a mafia family's law. It's independent to the law this nation openly applies. It's the place they take you before they give you over to the judicial system. You stay there for a year or two and they make you really suffer to confess everything. — Ai Weiwei

As a person, I was born to give out my opinions. By giving out my opinions, I realize who I am. As long as I can communicate, I'm not so lonely. If I cannot travel, or do art, or have company, if they take away all my belongings, it doesn't matter at all. — Ai Weiwei

The practice of photography is no longer a means for recording reality. Instead, it has become reality itself — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

If civil society has nobody who protects the law, then what kind of society is that? — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

I see the Beijing National Stadium as an architectural project. I accepted Herzog and De Meuron's invitation to collaborate on the design, and our proposal won the competition. From beginning to end, I stayed with the project. I am committed to fostering relationships between a city and its architecture. — Ai Weiwei

The world is a sphere, there is no East or West. — Ai Weiwei

To protect the right of expression is the central part of an artist's activity ... In China many essential rights are lacking, and I wanted to remind people of this. — Ai Weiwei

We see the tendency in the world to criticise democracy and sometimes even to say that authoritarian countries like China are more efficient. That is very short-sighted. China looks efficient only because it can sacrifice most people's rights. This is not something the west should be happy about. — Ai Weiwei

I think my stance and my way of life is my most important art. — Ai Weiwei

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

I don't want the next generation to fight the same fight as I did. — Ai Weiwei

Life is much more interesting when you make a little bit of effort. — Ai Weiwei

In the '80s, you couldn't walk in the neighborhood without looking back to see if anyone was following you. You had your key in your hand before you got to your apartment and you'd rush in so you didn't have to stop. — Ai Weiwei

Without freedom of speech, there is no modern world, just a barbaric one. — Ai Weiwei

I'm always followed by two or three cars and have police around. Even walking in the park, you see them taking photos behind the bushes and trying to videotape everything. — Ai Weiwei

If a society cannot even support somebody like me, then people ask: Who is under protection then? That's why there is such support for me. It is not because I am so beautiful or I am so charming. People feel: This guy is fighting for us. — Ai Weiwei

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

Anyone fighting for freedom does not want to totally lose their freedom. — Ai Weiwei

Freedom of expression is a very essential condition for me to make any art. Also, it is an essential value for my life. I have to protect this right and also to fight for the possibility. — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

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

The media is the message. It carries the full intention and the meaning. Once you change it ... it's very disturbing. — Ai Weiwei

Twitter was like a poem. It was rich, real and spontaneous. It really fit my style. In a year and a half, I tweeted 60,000 tweets, over 100,000 words. I spent a minimum eight hours a day on it, sometimes 24 hours. — Ai Weiwei

To survive, China had to open up to the West. It could not survive otherwise. This was after many millions have died of hunger in a country that was like North Korea is today. Once we became part of global competition, we had to agree to some rules. It's painful, but we had to. Otherwise there was no way to survive. — Ai Weiwei

Once I was in New York, I completely had no interest for a long time in what happened in China because I had been through so much. Seeing my father's life struggle and so many whole generations lose their potential or possibility in their lives. Just being pushed into this political struggle and the damage done not only to their lives but their relatives. — Ai Weiwei

Whenever there is injustice, there is tension. But in China it is very hard to release your anger unless you burn yourself or you jump from a bridge. In a society where there is no freedom of the press, it is difficult for victims to be noticed. — Ai Weiwei

Everyone of us is a potential convict. — Ai Weiwei

The conceptual artist Ai WeiWei illustrates the schizoid society that rapid change has produced - sometimes by reassembling Ming-style furniture into absurd and useless arrangements, or by carefully painting and antiquing a Coca-Cola logo on an ancient Chinese pot. — Arne Glimcher

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. — Ai Weiwei

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. — Ai Weiwei

Expressing oneself is like a drug. I'm so addicted to it. — Ai Weiwei

The people who control culture in China have no culture. — Ai Weiwei

Life is never guaranteed to be safe, so we better use it while we are still in good condition. — Ai Weiwei

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

Technology is a liberation. I think the information age probably is the best thing to happen to the human race in human evolution. Now you have the equal opportunity to equip yourself through information and knowledge and express yourself as an independent mind. — Ai Weiwei

The natural desire to save a cat is what it means to be a citizen. — Ai Weiwei

Of course, most luxury goods in China are for corrupted officials and their relatives. And that made China become the biggest luxury-goods market. In this kind of dictatorship, in this kind of totalitarian society, it is easy to make deals that you cannot make in a democratic society. — Ai Weiwei

A city is a place that can offer maximum freedom. Otherwise it's incomplete. — Ai Weiwei

If you don't act, the danger becomes stronger. — Ai Weiwei

Police in China can do whatever they want; after 81 days in arbitrary detention you clearly realise that they don't have to obey their own laws. In a society like this there is no negotiation, no discussion, except to tell you that power can crush you any time they want - not only you, your whole family and all people like you. — Ai Weiwei

China is an old nation with a colourful history. Its booming economy has triggered an appetite and a curiosity around the world for its art and culture, one that continues to grow. I can, however, tell people that it is a show with no actor. — Ai Weiwei

Stupidity can win for a moment, but it can never really succeed because the nature of humans is to seek freedom. Rulers can delay that freedom, but they cannot stop it. — Ai Weiwei

I think art is a very important weapon to achieve human freedom — Ai Weiwei

China didn't want to lose the cutting edge of technology. So the idea of having a Sina Weibo was an attempt to compete with Twitter. However, it has no soul - which is freedom of expression. Nevertheless, I think the government regrets having Sina Weibo, but they cannot shut it down. That would definitely be suicidal. — Ai Weiwei

Ai Weiwei, who is both a widely admired conceptual artist and a fearless human-rights activist, has been on the bad side of the Chinese government for years. — Terry Teachout

I'm an artist who is always looking for what is possible. I'm always looking to extend the boundaries. — Ai Weiwei

This world should be much more open and should be much more free, so the young people would have the chance to exercise the quality of their lives. — Ai Weiwei

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

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. — Ai Weiwei

To experience poetry is to see over and above reality. It is to discover that which is beyond the physical, to experience another life and another level of feeling. It is to wonder about the world, to understand the nature of people and, most importantly, to be shared with another, old or young, known or unknown. — Ai Weiwei

I think by not letting young people be fully informed, how can they have energy and passion and the right picture of the world? I think that's the true crime. — Ai Weiwei

Art should live in the heart of the people. Ordinary people should have the same ability to understand art as anybody else. I don't think art is elite or mysterious. — Ai Weiwei

I am everywhere and I am nowhere. That's the beauty of the Internet Age. — Ai Weiwei

The deadly weapon against totalitarian society is openness - doing everything very openly on the Internet, letting people know every detail, any little development. Once it is out there, everybody can make their own judgement. [Therefore] holding a trial outside the court. I think that is fairness, that is justice, that is a civil society. Otherwise call it an evil society because everything is hidden. — Ai Weiwei

Life is art. Art is life. I never separate it. — Ai Weiwei

Twitter is the people's tool, the tool of the ordinary people, people who have no other resources. — Ai Weiwei

The idea to use backpacks came from my visit to Sichuan after the earthquake in May 2008. During the earthquake many schools collapsed. Thousands of young students lost their lives, and you could see bags and study material everywhere. Then you realize individual life, media, and the lives of the students are serving very different purposes. The lives of the students disappeared within the state propaganda, and very soon everybody will forget everything. — Ai Weiwei

There's a reason the Chinese government is very concerned about Ai Weiwei. It's because he has all of these ingredients in his life that allow him to attract enormous attention across a very broad spectrum of the population. — Evan Osnos