Life is like topography, Hobbes. There are summits of happiness and success, flat stretches of boring routine and valleys of frustration and failure.
Bill WattersonRead
People always make the mistake of thinking art is created for them. But really, art is a private language for sophisticates to congratulate themselves on their superiority to the rest of the world. As my artist’s statement explains, my work is utterly incomprehensible and is therefore full of deep significance.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Art is often misunderstood as being created for the audience, when in reality it serves as a personal expression for the artist.
This quote emphasizes the notion that art is not merely a product intended for public consumption; rather, it is a personal, private expression meant to communicate complex ideas and emotions understood primarily by the artist and a select audience. It highlights the disconnect between the artist's intentions and the audience's reception, suggesting that true artistry lies in its depth and the unique personal significance it holds, as opposed to its accessibility or popularity.
Themes
ArtExpressionInterpretationAudienceCreativity
In practice
Example use cases
During a gallery opening, you might use this quote to explain the nature of artistic expression.
More from Bill Watterson
All quotes →Sometimes when I'm talking, my words can't keep up with my thoughts. I wonder why we think faster than we speak. Probably so we can think twice.
Bill WattersonRead
The secret to enjoying your job is to have a hobby that's even worse
Bill WattersonRead
Shutting off the thought process is not rejuvenating; the mind is like a car battery - it recharges by running.
Bill WattersonRead
Mothers are the necessity of invention.
Bill WattersonRead
Dad: Honey, have you seen my glasses? I can"t find them. Mom: I haven't seen them. Calvin: (with glasses, to Dad) Calvin, go do something you hate! Being miserable builds character!
Bill WattersonRead
Similar quotes
Dress is at all times a frivolous distinction, and excessive solicitude about it often destroys its own aim.
Jane AustenRead
The army from Asia introduced a foreign luxury to Rome; it was then the meals began to require more dishes and more expenditure . . . the cook, who had up to that time been employed as a slave of low price, become dear: what had been nothing but a metier was elevated to an art.
LivyRead
I believe that the best cameraman is one who recognizes the source, the story, as the basis of his work.
James Wong HoweRead
To feel beauty is a better thing than to understand how we come to feel it. To have imagination and taste, to love the best, to be carried by the contemplation of nature to a vivid faith in the ideal, all this is more, a great deal more, than any science can hope to be.
George SantayanaRead
Have you ever wondered why young people take to music like fish to water? Maybe it's because music is fun. Plan and simple. It opens up their minds to dream great dreams about where they can go and what they can do when they get older.
Isaac HayesRead
After a while, when the writer is mature, it doesn't really matter - not because of finances but because of reputation. It doesn't really matter how many awards you get.
Derek WalcottRead