I once went to a demonstration in Aachen against fare increases on public transport. A police officer pulled out a bunch of my hair, and there were a lot of violent beatings. That's when I thought to myself: You'd better leave it alone.

I lived on a houseboat in Amsterdam for a year. It was intense, and it's possible that I even had a few blackouts.

For the cynic, art is defined through money. That, of course, is a very sad statement. But an artist is someone who does creative things.

In a legal sense, I am a convicted criminal.

I think that the most important requirement is to capture the essence of a piece of art. You look at it, essentially absorb it, and you have to be able to understand it visually without having to think about how it was done. I was already able to do that as a child.

I can paint anything. Leonardo? Of course. But why? You couldn't sell it.

One is a criminal to some people and an artist to others. I can understand that. In a legal sense, I am a convicted criminal.