Art maybe the only space where an indvidual can be utterly free to question himself, as well as his relationship to his God

When I see a new artist I give myself a lot of time to reflect and decide whether it's art or not.

I never see a forest that does not bear a mark or a sign of history.

If I do something that depresses, it's not because I'm depressed, but because political life and history is depressing.

I was interested in transcendence from a very early age. I was interested in what was over there, what was behind life. So when I had my first communion I was very disappointed. I had expected something amazing and surprising and spiritual. Instead all I got was a bicycle. That wasn't what I was after at all.

When, at the end of the 1960s, I became interested in the Nazi era, it was a taboo subject in Germany. No one spoke about it anymore, no more in my house than anywhere else.

Art is difficult. It's not entertainment. There are only a few people who can say something about art - it's very restricted. When I see a new artist I give myself a lot of time to reflect and decide whether it's art or not. Buying art is not understanding art.