All great art is revolutionary because it touches upon the reality of man and questions the reality of the various transitory forms of human society.
Interpretation
Great art challenges societal norms and reflects deeper truths about humanity.
In this quote, Eric Hoffer emphasizes that the essence of great art lies in its ability to provoke thought and reflection on the human condition. Art is not merely a reflection of society; it possesses the power to question and criticize the fleeting constructs of human civilization, thereby encouraging a deeper understanding of ourselves and our world.
In practice
In an art critique discussing the transformative power of modernist works.
Language was invented to ask questions. Answers may be given by grunts and gestures, but questions must be spoken. Humanness came of age when man asked the first question. Social stagnation results not from a lack of answers but from the absence of the impulse to ask questions.
Faith in humanity, in posterity, in the destiny of one's religion, nation, race, party or family-what is it but the visualization of that eternal something to which we attach the self that is about to be annihilated?
You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you.
Our frustration is greater when we have much and want more than when we have nothing and want some. We are less dissatisfied when we lack many things than when we seem to lack but one thing.
Our credulity is greatest concerning the things we know least about.
Perhaps a modern society can remain stable only by eliminating adolescence, by giving its young, from the age of ten, the skills, responsibilities, and rewards of grownups, and opportunities for action in all spheres of life. Adolescence should be a time of useful action, while book learning and scholarship should be a preoccupation of adults.
A successful book is not made of what is in it, but what is left out of it.
Aestheticism is a search after the signs of the beautiful. It is the science of the beautiful through which men seek the correlation of the arts. It is, to speak more exactly, the search after the secret of life.
The more I think about it, the more I realize there is nothing more artistic than to love others.
You don't decide to paint. It's like getting hungry and going to the kitchen to eat. It's a need, not a choice.
Labels need to work with artists to help them achieve their best work, not to jam records out that are half-baked or three-quarters baked.
In a live performance, it's a collaboration with the audience; you ride the ebb and flow of the crowd's energy. On television, you don't have that.
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