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

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

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

I call on people to be 'obsessed citizens,' forever questioning and asking for accountability. That's the only chance we have today of a healthy and happy life.

I think Allen [Ginsberg] was a person who's like a child.

My definition of art has always been the same. It is about freedom of expression, a new way of communication. It is never about exhibiting in museums or about hanging it on the wall.

The leadership knows that you cannot solve the issues of China's future with the means of the past. The demographic consequences of the one-child policy, the build-up of the welfare state, the jobs for 7 million university graduates every year, the immense corruption: Even some Western governments would have to scramble to find solutions to such problems.