---
title: "2 Readings Surface Quotes By Richard Avedon"
description: "2 Readings Surface quotes by Richard Avedon. Plus more from Richard Avedon and more Readings Surface sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/richard-avedon-10149_beauty_my-photographs-don-t-go-below-the-surfac_805899.jpg"
---

> [My photographs don't go below the surface. They don't go below anything. They're readings of the surface. I have great faith in surfaces. A good one is full of clues. But whenever I become absorbed in the beauty of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/my-photographs-don-t-go-below-the-surface-they-don-t-go-below/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/richard-avedon-10149_beauty_my-photographs-don-t-go-below-the-surfac_805899.jpg)

> [My photographs don't go below the surface. They don't go below anything. They're readings of the surface. I have great faith in surfaces. A good one is full of clues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/my-photographs-don-t-go-below-the-surface-they-don-t-go-below-2/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/richard-avedon-10149_below-the-surface_my-photographs-don-t-go-below-the-surfac_1678727.jpg)

## More by Richard Avedon

> [A photographic portrait is a picture of someone who knows he is being photographed, and what he does with this knowledge is as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/a-photographic-portrait-is-a-picture-of-someone-who-knows-he-is-being/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [Snapshots that have been taken of me working show something I was not aware of at all, that over and over again I'm holding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/snapshots-that-have-been-taken-of-me-working-show-something-i-was-not/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [Sometimes I think all my pictures are just pictures of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/sometimes-i-think-all-my-pictures-are-just-pictures-of-me/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [There's always been a separation between fashion and what I call my deeper work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/there-s-always-been-a-separation-between-fashion-and-what-i-call-my/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [I can see myself as a very old man in a terrific wheelchair. Only, I won't be photographing the tree outside my window, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/i-can-see-myself-as-a-very-old-man-in-a-terrific-wheelchair-only-i/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [I am, and forever will be, devastated by the gift of Audrey Hepburn before my camera. I cannot lift her to greater heights. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/i-am-and-forever-will-be-devastated-by-the-gift-of-audrey-hepburn/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [I've photographed just about everyone in the world. But what I hope to do is photograph people of accomplishment, not celebrity, and help define…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/i-ve-photographed-just-about-everyone-in-the-world-but-what-i-hope-to/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [If each photograph steals a bit of the soul, isn't it possible that I give up pieces of mine every time I take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/if-each-photograph-steals-a-bit-of-the-soul-isn-t-it-possible-that-i/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [Marilyn Monroe gave more to the still camera than any actress, any woman I've ever photographed; infinitely more patient, more demanding of herself and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/marilyn-monroe-gave-more-to-the-still-camera-than-any-actress-any/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [ It's in trying to direct the traffic between Artiface \[sic\] and Candor, without being run over, that I'm confronted with the questions about photography… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/it-s-in-trying-to-direct-the-traffic-between-artiface-sic-and-candor/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [A portrait is not a likeness. The moment an emotion or fact is transformed into a photograph it is no longer a fact but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/a-portrait-is-not-a-likeness-the-moment-an-emotion-or-fact-is/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [The moment an emotion or fact is transformed into a photograph it is no longer a fact but an opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/the-moment-an-emotion-or-fact-is-transformed-into-a-photograph-it-is/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [When I was a boy, my family took great care with our snapshots. We really planned them. We made compositions. We posed in front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/when-i-was-a-boy-my-family-took-great-care-with-our-snapshots-we/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [I don't really remember the day when I stood behind my camera with Henry Kissinger on the other side. I am sure he doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/i-don-t-really-remember-the-day-when-i-stood-behind-my-camera-with/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

> [And if a day goes by without my doing something related to photography, it's as though I've neglected something essential to my existence, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/and-if-a-day-goes-by-without-my-doing-something-related-to/)

[Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/)

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