I have always stated I designed the stadium as a toilet seat. I don't care if this is a great cultural event or a national symbol. It has nothing to do with me. It deals with the city.

In my case, I was stuck there for quite a while. New York is large enough to be a very abstract city, so nobody cares.

Your own acts tell the world who you are and what kind of society you think it should be.

If human rights are supposed to have any meaning, then they have to be discussed openly.

Many people I know - writers, poets - they have all been sentenced not once but sometimes three times after they come out. They serve five or six years, come out another time, and then nine years. Come out again, 12 years. Only because they have a different opinion. They are innocent people, they have beautiful minds, beautiful hearts.

I have to find a place for my own. I have to search for my own happiness.

China spends a lot of resources and effort on gaining soft power over culture. The hope is that it can be the last lifeline for the Party's survival. Obviously, the idea will fail.