That's why I always question this sense. The feeling of home really requires a lot of trust. It requires you to identify with it, which I always find myself very contradictory to.

Modern Chinese culture is weak and lackluster.

Maybe [success] is because I'm in China and I'm more open. Maybe it's my independent behavior, or because I participated in certain projects. I have no idea.

I lived there [ in New York City] as an artist, but never as a Chinese artist.

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

It's always the rich and there's plenty to waste, yet still China has a lot of people living in very spare, poor conditions.

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.