I want to live in a city where the people who make the rules have to live by them. - Martin Firrell

I realized that the only possible response was to go to my wonderful local café, Maison Bertaux, check everyone was well, eat a little cake and then make art. To me, making art, and in particular public art, is always an assertion of our humanity and our strength.

It is perfectly reasonable to despair of a world where the Nobel Committee gives the Peace Prize to a man running a war.

I believe we have to put art back at the center of everyday life rather than allowing it to become a specialist activity at the margins of society.