--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What to paint was a problem for the war…" description: "\"What to paint was a problem for the war artist... the old heroics, the death and glory stuff, were gone forever... the impressionistic technique I had ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/a-y-jackson-48666_art_what-to-paint-was-a-problem-for-the-war_1479565.jpg" --- # What to paint was a problem for the war artist... the old… ![“What to paint was a problem for the war artist... the old heroics, the death and glory stuff, were gone forever... the impressionistic technique I had developed was now ineffective, for visual impressions were not enough.” quote by A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/a-y-jackson-48666_art_what-to-paint-was-a-problem-for-the-war_1479565.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/a-y-jackson-48666_art_what-to-paint-was-a-problem-for-the-war_1479565.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/a-y-jackson-48666_art_what-to-paint-was-a-problem-for-the-war_1479565.jpg) > “What to paint was a problem for the war artist... the old heroics, the death and glory stuff, were gone forever... the impressionistic technique I had developed was now ineffective, for visual impressions were not enough.” [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The artist felt his previous style failed to capture the new reality of war, needing a different visual language. **In simple terms:** Old techniques no longer suited to war’s truth. Key Takeaway Seek new methods when old ones fail. Themes art war innovation Mood reflective somber Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - war correspondence - artistic reinvention - historical documentation Key Concepts visual perception impermanence Questions to Reflect On - How can an artist adapt to radical change? - What does “visual impressions” mean today? A Different Perspective New approaches may still miss deeper truths. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Glory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/glory/) [Impressionism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impressionism/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Technique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technique/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [You can read my stuff; there are not very many quotes. 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To her,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monique-martin/but-memory-paints-impressionistic-portraits-of-the-past-enhancing/) [Monique Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monique-martin/) > [The impressionistic method leads into a complete splitting and dissolution of all areas involved in the composition, and color is used to create an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-hofmann/the-impressionistic-method-leads-into-a-complete-splitting-and/) [Hans Hofmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-hofmann/) > [I'm somebody who has to physically experience an environment in order to know it as well as I would like to know it. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bradley/i-m-somebody-who-has-to-physically-experience-an-environment-in-order/) [Bill Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bradley/) > [Sometimes I think that there's a fine line between impressionistic and messy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/sometimes-i-think-that-there-s-a-fine-line-between-impressionistic/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [America does not concern itself now with Impressionism. We own no involved philosophy. The psyche of the land is to be found in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/america-does-not-concern-itself-now-with-impressionism-we-own-no/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [Impressionism is simply twenty minutes into LSD.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/impressionism-is-simply-twenty-minutes-into-lsd/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Impressionism; it is the birth of Light in painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-delaunay/impressionism-it-is-the-birth-of-light-in-painting/) [Robert Delaunay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-delaunay/) > [A person with normal eyesight would have nothing to know in the way of 'Impressionism' unless he were in a blinding light or in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-singer-sargent/a-person-with-normal-eyesight-would-have-nothing-to-know-in-the-way/) [John Singer Sargent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-singer-sargent/) > [It took some time before the public learned that to appreciate an Impressionist painting one has to step back a few yards, and enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-gombrich/it-took-some-time-before-the-public-learned-that-to-appreciate-an/) [Ernst Gombrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-gombrich/) > [To my mind, a picture should be something pleasant, cheerful, and pretty, yes pretty! There are too many unpleasant things in life as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-auguste-renoir/to-my-mind-a-picture-should-be-something-pleasant-cheerful-and-pretty/) [Pierre-Auguste Renoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-auguste-renoir/) > [“The very name Impressionism is taken from an Atlantic Ocean painting - that of Monet, of sunrise in the harbor of Le Havre, done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-winchester/the-very-name-impressionism-is-taken-from-an-atlantic-ocean-painting/) [Simon winchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-winchester/) > [A building is akin to dogma; it is insolent, like dogma. Whether or no it is permanent, it claims permanence, like a dogma. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/a-building-is-akin-to-dogma-it-is-insolent-like-dogma-whether-or-no/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) ## More by A. Y. Jackson > [It's probably hard for anyone looking at my landscapes today to realize that I was once regarded as a rebel, a dangerous influence; that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/it-s-probably-hard-for-anyone-looking-at-my-landscapes-today-to/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) > [Chop your own path. Get off the car track](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/chop-your-own-path-get-off-the-car-track/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) > [To Lawren Harris art was almost a mission. He believed that a country which ignored the arts left no record of itself worth preserving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/to-lawren-harris-art-was-almost-a-mission-he-believed-that-a-country/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) > [Those who follow are always behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/those-who-follow-are-always-behind/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) > [Artists are often excellent businessmen. They have to be. Otherwise they do not remain artists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/artists-are-often-excellent-businessmen-they-have-to-be-otherwise/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) > [ Not knowing all of the conventions of beauty, he \[Tom Thomson\] found it all beautiful. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/not-knowing-all-of-the-conventions-of-beauty-he-tom-thomson-found-it/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) > [The obedient in art are always the forgotten . . . The country is glorious but its beauties are unknown, and but waiting for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-y-jackson/the-obedient-in-art-are-always-the-forgotten-the-country-is-glorious/) [A. Y. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) [Explore all 8 A. Y. Jackson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-y-jackson/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. 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You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. 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And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What to paint was a problem for the war artist... the old heroics, the death and glory stuff, were gone forever... the impressionistic technique I had developed was now ineffective, for visual impressions were not enough.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "A. 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