Cai Guo-Qiang

The boyhood dream of becoming a painter stays important to me.

When I was young, I didn't want to do traditional painting and calligraphy. I deliberately wanted to separate from my father so I could feel I existed myself.

I do believe every artwork has its own charisma. Sometimes it's different from what I expect. When a work is finished, it exudes its own charisma and lives its life independently.

Even though Chinese society was really closed, there were two windows for me to explore the world. One was from my mother and grandmother, the unseen and invisible world. Another window was brought from my father's side, those classic and Western books.

I have always been a coward as a child. I am not very brave. I am very aware of the fact that I am not very gutsy.

I lived in Japan for eight years before moving to New York, but I was looking forward to a place like America to change my opinion on things and force me to come up with new perspectives.

When I was young, the constraints of Chinese society and my personal timid and cautious nature both drove me to seek a means to go against control. Gunpowder has an inherent uncertainty and uncontrollability and is an important means for me to relieve myself of constraint.

Everyone has their moments of solitude, difficulties, and vulnerability.

For my art, there is a common theme most of the time: it is using the things we can see to search for the world we cannot see.

Only individual creativity can bring about real social development.

I have always found that if, while creating an artwork, the artist constantly feels that some accident would occur if he is not careful, then it is a very significant moment and a significant work.

Only an idiot would open an exhibition saying, 'Look at my awesome work.'