I hope I have made it clear that the work is about perfection as we are aware of it in our minds but that the paintings are very far from being perfect - completely removed in fact - even as we ourselves are.
Agnes MartinRead
What we really want to do is serve happiness. We want everyone to be happy, never unhappy even for a moment. We want the animals to be happy. The happiness of every living thing is what we want.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of serving happiness for all living beings.
Agnes Martin's quote highlights a universal desire to cultivate and sustain happiness, not only for humans but for all animals and living entities. It reflects an altruistic perspective on well-being, suggesting that true fulfillment comes from ensuring joy and contentment for everyone around us, resonating with a compassionate approach to life.
Themes
HappinessServingJoyWell-BeingCompassion
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a wellness seminar to promote positive living.
More from Agnes Martin
All quotes →The value of art is in the observer.
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The main thing in making art often is letting go of your expectation and your idea.
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My paintings are not about what is seen. They are about what is known forever in the mind.
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Art is the concrete representation of our most subtle feelings.
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Any material may be used but the theme is the same and the response is the same for all artwork... we all have the same concern, but the artist must know exactly what the experience is. He must pursue the truth relentlessly
Agnes MartinRead
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I think most of us are raised with preconceived notions of the choices we're supposed to make. We waste so much time making decisions based on someone else's idea of our happiness - what will make you a good citizen or a good wife or daughter or actress. Nobody says, 'Just be happy - go be a cobbler or go live with goats.'
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As I get, I give. Giving as you get is critical. It has everything to do with being happy for yourself, and making others happy is the cause of making yourself happy, and it’s the cycle of giving and getting.
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Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.
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The one thing that can solve most of our problems is dancing.
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Who is rich? He that is content. Who is that? Nobody.
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That man lives happy and in command of himself, who from day to day can say I have lived. Whether clouds obscure, or the sun illumines the following day, that which is past is beyond recall.
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