Ai Weiwei
Ai Weiwei
Ai Weiwei; born 28 August 1957 in Beijing) is a Chinese Contemporary artist and activist. His father's side's original surname is 蔣 Jiang. Ai collaborated with Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron as the artistic consultant on the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Olympics. As a political activist, he has been highly and openly critical of the Chinese Government's stance on democracy and human rights. He has investigated government corruption and cover-ups, in particular the Sichuan schools corruption scandal...
NationalityChinese
ProfessionSculptor
Date of Birth18 May 1957
CityBeijing, China
CountryChina
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.
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.
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.
Anyone fighting for freedom does not want to totally lose their freedom.
If there is no freedom of expression, then the beauty of life is lost. Participation in a society is not an artistic choice, it’s a human need.
Life is art. Art is life. I never separate it. I don’t feel that much anger. I equally have a lot of joy.
Measuring national prestige by gold medals is like using Viagra to judge the potency of a man.
A city is a place that can offer maximum freedom. Otherwise it’s incomplete.
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.
I am everywhere and I am nowhere. That's the beauty of the Internet Age.
Twitter is the people’s tool, the tool of the ordinary people, people who have no other resources.
Life is much more interesting when you make a little bit of effort.
Cities really are mental conditions. Beijing is a nightmare. A constant nightmare.
I will never leave China, unless I am forced to. Because China is mine. I will not leave something that belongs to me in the hands of people I do not trust.