The attitude that nature is chaotic and that the artist puts order into it is a very absurd point of view, I think. All that we can hope for is to put some order into ourselves.
Willem De KooningRead
I paint the way I do because I can keep on putting more and more things in - like drama, pain, anger, love, a figure, a horse, my ideas of space. It doesn't matter if it differs from mine, as long as it comes from the painting, which has its own integrity and intensity.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the idea that a painting encompasses various emotions and elements, allowing for personal expression and integrity beyond the artist's control.
Willem De Kooning emphasizes that the process of painting is an accumulation of diverse feelings and concepts such as drama, pain, anger, and love. He suggests that the artwork possesses its own unique integrity and intensity, and it doesn't have to align with the artist’s original intentions, as the painting itself communicates its own truth and narrative through the layers of expression contained within it.
Themes
PaintingEmotionsExpressionIntegrityArt
In practice
Example use cases
During a gallery opening, one might share this quote to discuss the depth of emotions in artist expressions.
More from Willem De Kooning
All quotes →I don't paint to live, I live to paint.
Willem De KooningRead
Spiritually I am wherever my spirit allows me to be, and that is not necessarily in the future... Art never seems to make me peaceful or pure.
Willem De KooningRead
Im not someone whos ever said anything definitive about his work. In my life also I have very little fixed form. I can change overnight.
Willem De KooningRead
Art should not have to be a certain way.
Willem De KooningRead
My interest in desperation lies only in that sometimes I find myself having become desperate. Very seldom do I start out that way. I can see of course that, in the abstract, thinking and all activity is rather desperate.
Willem De KooningRead
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