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I think you have to control the materials to an extent, but it's important to let the materials have a kind of power for themselves; like the natural power of gravity, if you are painting on a wall, it makes the paint trickle and it drips; there is no reason to fight that.
Keith Haring
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Art involves a balance between control and letting natural elements influence the outcome.

In this quote, Keith Haring emphasizes the importance of allowing the inherent qualities of the materials used in artistic expression to play a role in the final work. Instead of strictly controlling every aspect, he suggests that artists should embrace and work with the natural forces at play, such as gravity affecting paint, to create a more organic and liberated form of art.

Themes

ArtMaterialsCreativityGravityExpression

In practice

Example use cases

An artist's statement at a gallery opening discussing their techniques.

More from Keith Haring

I am intrigued with the shapes people choose as their symbols to create a language. There is within all forms a basic structure, an indication of the entire object with a minimum of lines that becomes a symbol. This is common to all languages, all people, all times.
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The act of creation is a kind of ritual. The origins of art and human existence lie hidden in this mystery of creation. Human creativity reaffirms and mystifies the power of 'life.
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When it is working, you completely go into another place, you're tapping into things that are totally universal, completely beyond your ego and your own self. That's what it's all about.
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Drawing is still basically the same as it has been since prehistoric times. It brings together man and the world. It lives through magic.
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I don't think art is propaganda; it should be something that liberates the soul, provokes the imagination and encourages people to go further. It celebrates humanity instead of manipulating it.
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My contribution to the world is my ability to draw. I will draw as much as I can for as many people as I can for as long as I can.
Keith HaringRead

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