--- title: "3 Abstraction Quotes By Sufjan Stevens" description: "3 Abstraction quotes by Sufjan Stevens. Plus more from Sufjan Stevens and more Abstraction sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_i-like-residing-in-abstraction-25640_25640.jpg" --- > [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_i-like-residing-in-abstraction-25640_25640.jpg) > [The music is the imperative. It has the upper hand. I think all music, even though it's an abstraction, does motivate a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-upper-hand-i-think-all-music/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-u_767470.jpg) > [It's a mystical quality of music, that music isn't really concrete, and it's communicating abstractions about imaginary worlds. At least, my music's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/it-s-a-mystical-quality-of-music-that-music-isn-t-really-concrete-and/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a5/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_it-s-a-mystical-quality-of-music-that-mu_2831150.jpg) ## Other authors on Abstraction - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b019/author-paul-gauguin-73925.jpg) Paul Gauguin 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/paul-gauguin/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b003/author-alfred-north-whitehead-11331.jpg) Alfred North Whitehead 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/alfred-north-whitehead/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b024/author-william-james-95592.jpg) William James 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/william-james/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b024/author-william-hazlitt-95511.jpg) William Hazlitt 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/william-hazlitt/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b004/author-arnon-goldfinger-14779.jpg) Piet Mondrian 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/piet-mondrian/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b013/author-jerry-saltz-49147.jpg) Jerry Saltz 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/jerry-saltz/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b012/author-jean-baudrillard-47950.jpg) Jean Baudrillard 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/jean-baudrillard/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b011/author-herbert-marcuse-41824.jpg) Herbert Marcuse 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/herbert-marcuse/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b010/author-fulton-j-sheen-36488.jpg) Fulton J. Sheen 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/fulton-j-sheen/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b003/author-aldous-huxley-10635.jpg) Aldous Huxley 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/aldous-huxley/) ## More by Sufjan Stevens > [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Perhaps we have failed as human beings. Perhaps we have embarrassed ourselves to the natural world. We have been rigorous and willful in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/perhaps-we-have-failed-as-human-beings-perhaps-we-have-embarrassed/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Everyone suffers; life is pain; and death is the final punctuation at the end of that sentence, so deal with it. I really think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/everyone-suffers-life-is-pain-and-death-is-the-final-punctuation-at/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [One of my strongest memories is my father playing bongos in the living room in Detroit listening to Motown radio. He was this skinny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/one-of-my-strongest-memories-is-my-father-playing-bongos-in-the/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [I think musicians should stay off television generally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-think-musicians-should-stay-off-television-generally/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [“Now that I fell into your arms My only lover, give out to give in I search for the capsule I lost”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/now-that-i-fell-into-your-arms-my-only-lover-give-out-to-give-in-i/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [There's a sense of urgency in understanding that your body is not really your own. We can control it to a certain extent through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/there-s-a-sense-of-urgency-in-understanding-that-your-body-is-not/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [I felt that there's an obligation when writing a piece about an urban expressway made in the 50s to acknowledge the context, and Robert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-felt-that-there-s-an-obligation-when-writing-a-piece-about-an-urban/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [“I forgive you, mother, I can hear you And I long to be near you But every road leads to an end Yes every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-forgive-you-mother-i-can-hear-you-and-i-long-to-be-near-you-but/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [The best fiction is geared towards conflict. We learn most about our characters through tension, when they are put up against insurmountable obstacles. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/the-best-fiction-is-geared-towards-conflict-we-learn-most-about-our/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Some of my music requires an obsessive-compulsive approach and a real embodiment of excessiveness. So I really have to live in that world of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/some-of-my-music-requires-an-obsessive-compulsive-approach-and-a-real/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Every time Jimmy Scott sings, it's the same but slightly different. I don't know how he does that or where he gets that from.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/every-time-jimmy-scott-sings-it-s-the-same-but-slightly-different-i/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [“I always knew you In your mothers arms I have called your name I have an idea Placed in your mind To be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-always-knew-you-in-your-mothers-arms-i-have-called-your-name-i-have/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Life is all about toiling and labor. But obviously I get great joy in confronting challenge and taking risk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/life-is-all-about-toiling-and-labor-but-obviously-i-get-great-joy-in/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [I no longer really have faith in the album anymore. I no longer have faith in the song,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-no-longer-really-have-faith-in-the-album-anymore-i-no-longer-have/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/#itemlist", "name": "3 Abstraction Quotes By Sufjan Stevens", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I like residing in abstraction.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sufjan Stevens" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_i-like-residing-in-abstraction-25640_25640.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_i-like-residing-in-abstraction-25640_25640.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_i-like-residing-in-abstraction-25640_25640.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I like residing in abstraction.” — Sufjan Stevens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The music is the imperative. It has the upper hand. I think all music, even though it's an abstraction, does motivate a particular meaning. Then it's the job of the musician to honor that meaning and to somehow implement lyrical material that can accommodate that emotional environment.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sufjan Stevens" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-upper-hand-i-think-all-music/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-u_767470.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-u_767470.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62d/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-u_767470.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The music is the imperative. It has the upper hand. I think all music, even though it's an abstraction, does…” — Sufjan Stevens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's a mystical quality of music, that music isn't really concrete, and it's communicating abstractions about imaginary worlds. At least, my music's like that. It's not real. It's unreal, it's all fabrication. To write a song about Obama would suddenly break the spell.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sufjan Stevens" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/it-s-a-mystical-quality-of-music-that-music-isn-t-really-concrete-and/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a5/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_it-s-a-mystical-quality-of-music-that-mu_2831150.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a5/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_it-s-a-mystical-quality-of-music-that-mu_2831150.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a5/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_it-s-a-mystical-quality-of-music-that-mu_2831150.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's a mystical quality of music, that music isn't really concrete, and it's communicating abstractions…” — Sufjan Stevens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/", "name": "Abstraction Quotes by Sufjan Stevens", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/sufjan-stevens-5325_abstraction_i-like-residing-in-abstraction-25640_25640.jpg" }, "description": "3 Abstraction quotes by Sufjan Stevens. Plus more from Sufjan Stevens and more Abstraction sayings from other authors.", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/#breadcrumb" } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Topics", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Abstraction", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "name": "Sufjan Stevens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/sufjan-stevens/" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```