I’m an artist who is always looking for what is possible. I’m always looking to extend the boundaries.

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.

I was an illegal alien for many, many years. I couldn't move. If I moved I could not even get a visa back.

Even though everybody who looked at me would call me a Chinese artist, that's the 1980s. New York in the '80s was not so interesting. I think it's quite narrow-minded. There wasn't much encouragement or opportunities for any artist - not just Chinese artists.

Even if there have been setbacks during these past years, China is changing. China's society is opening.

If there's the right condition, I always want to express the concept or ideas in a very independent way.

If we all say the same thing, then I think the government has to listen. But because no one is saying it, I become singled out, even though what I'm saying is common sense. It's very essential values that we all have to protect. But in Chinese society, people are giving up on protecting these values.