--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Artists are most themselves when they are…" description: "\"Artists are most themselves when they are out of their minds, transcending the ego skirmishes of conceptual thought, and intuitively relinquishing cont..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg" --- # Artists are most themselves when they are out of their… ![“Artists are most themselves when they are out of their minds, transcending the ego skirmishes of conceptual thought, and intuitively relinquishing control to the greater Creator” quote by Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg) > “Artists are most themselves when they are out of their minds, transcending the ego skirmishes of conceptual thought, and intuitively relinquishing control to the greater Creator” [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative freedom emerges when ego dissolves and intuition guides **In simple terms:** Artists create best when ego fades Key Takeaway Surrender control to higher inspiration Themes creativity ego spirituality Mood reflective spiritual Type philosophical artistic When to use this quote - artistic process - meditation - collaborative projects Key Concepts Transcendence intuition Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance ego and intuition? - When does surrender hinder creativity? A Different Perspective May romanticize loss of control ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Creator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creator/) [Ego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ego/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Relinquishing control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relinquishing-control/) ## Related quotes > [Next to the assumption of power was the responsibility of relinquishing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/next-to-the-assumption-of-power-was-the-responsibility-of/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [That is relinquishing control in a culture that prioritizes control and doing what you need to do in order to advance yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-platt/that-is-relinquishing-control-in-a-culture-that-prioritizes-control/) [David Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-platt/) > [Every one of us gets to find our way, hopefully surrounded by love, but we still have to pick out our own way through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-macgraw/every-one-of-us-gets-to-find-our-way-hopefully-surrounded-by-love-but/) [Ali MacGraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-macgraw/) > [There is a theology to gardening that few of us consider, but to understand this theology means relinquishing much control - our arsenal of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-mcdowell/there-is-a-theology-to-gardening-that-few-of-us-consider-but-to/) [Christopher McDowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-mcdowell/) > [I think that the older I get and the more comfortable I get with myself, the more I realize that art is about relinquishing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-d-lang/i-think-that-the-older-i-get-and-the-more-comfortable-i-get-with/) [K. D. Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-d-lang/) > [When I was 17 until, I don't know, 20, I had this massive, baseless confidence. This very clear idea of myself and how I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pattinson/when-i-was-17-until-i-don-t-know-20-i-had-this-massive-baseless/) [Robert Pattinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pattinson/) > [Prayer is not a way to get what we want to happen, like the remote control that comes with the television set. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/prayer-is-not-a-way-to-get-what-we-want-to-happen-like-the-remote/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [The spiritual in my art is giving up control. My paintings are based on what I can do, and what I can do is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-steir/the-spiritual-in-my-art-is-giving-up-control-my-paintings-are-based/) [Pat Steir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-steir/) > [“let for only a moment, relinquishing all control, overcoming my fear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrissy-peebles/let-for-only-a-moment-relinquishing-all-control-overcoming-my-fear/) [Chrissy Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrissy-peebles/) > [One tends to look back at the mistakes as the same thing - relinquishing control of something at some point in your career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mason/one-tends-to-look-back-at-the-mistakes-as-the-same-thing/) [Nick Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mason/) > [When we pray, we don't change the world, we change ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/when-we-pray-we-don-t-change-the-world-we-change-ourselves/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [Have the courage to speak your mind and tell the truth from a position of love rather than anger or fear, being open to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/have-the-courage-to-speak-your-mind-and-tell-the-truth-from-a/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [“Relinquishing control to another person is like death: it’s only scary until it finally happens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnostic-zetetic/relinquishing-control-to-another-person-is-like-death-it-s-only-scary/) Agnostic Zetetic > [If you want to reach a state of Bliss - make a decision to relinquish the need to control, the need to be approved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/if-you-want-to-reach-a-state-of-bliss-make-a-decision-to-relinquish/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [A painter told me that nobody could draw a tree without in some sort becoming a tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-painter-told-me-that-nobody-could-draw-a-tree-without-in-some-sort/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More by Alex Grey > [Folks who are alive today need to wake up and do what they can to stop abusing the planet, and find ways to preserve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/folks-who-are-alive-today-need-to-wake-up-and-do-what-they-can-to/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [Be an artist of consciousness. Your picture of reality is your most important creation. Make it powerfully profoundly beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/be-an-artist-of-consciousness-your-picture-of-reality-is-your-most/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [It was 1975. I had spent the year at the Boston Museum School doing some very bizarre performance works. The last one included going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/it-was-1975-i-had-spent-the-year-at-the-boston-museum-school-doing/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [Art is the skin of the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/art-is-the-skin-of-the-soul/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [For some people, maybe my artwork just seems like fantasy or something. However, if you have had any kind of a mystical or cosmic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/for-some-people-maybe-my-artwork-just-seems-like-fantasy-or-something/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [Religion comes from the word 're' or again and 'ligare' meaning to bind or tie back. The purpose of religion is to unite the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/religion-comes-from-the-word-re-or-again-and-ligare-meaning-to-bind/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [When we gaze into the eyes of our beloved, we're staring into the eyes of a sacred mirror, and we recognize our oneness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/when-we-gaze-into-the-eyes-of-our-beloved-we-re-staring-into-the-eyes/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [It is the prayer of my innermost being to realize my supreme identity in the liberated play of consciousness, the Vast Expanse. Now is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/it-is-the-prayer-of-my-innermost-being-to-realize-my-supreme-identity/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [A relationship succeeds when obstacles are met with communication and resolution. A relationship flourishes when we take the beloved as our teacher. Shared goals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/a-relationship-succeeds-when-obstacles-are-met-with-communication-and/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [It is very easy to take for granted the phenomenon that we are each alive, but we must try not to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/it-is-very-easy-to-take-for-granted-the-phenomenon-that-we-are-each/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [Journeying through secret doors, curving corridors, and connecting rooms into the mountain was like being digested by the different organs of a deity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/journeying-through-secret-doors-curving-corridors-and-connecting/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [When you see the face of God, or when you have an overwhelming, ecstatic, blissful, visionary experience; there is no doubt about it. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/when-you-see-the-face-of-god-or-when-you-have-an-overwhelming/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [When artists give form to revelation, their art can advance, deepen and potentially transform the consciousness of their community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/when-artists-give-form-to-revelation-their-art-can-advance-deepen-and/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [Enlightenment is not so much a hard-won achievement, much less a "creation," but instead is deep relaxation and recovery of our natural condition. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/enlightenment-is-not-so-much-a-hard-won-achievement-much-less-a/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) > [The more religions are fixated on having a dogmatic sense of truth, the more likely they are to blow each other up. So being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/the-more-religions-are-fixated-on-having-a-dogmatic-sense-of-truth/) [Alex Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) [Explore all 71 Alex Grey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/) ## 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. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. 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. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. 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": "Artists are most themselves when they are out of their minds, transcending the ego skirmishes of conceptual thought, and intuitively relinquishing control to the greater Creator", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alex Grey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-are-out-of-their-minds/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-are-out-of-their-minds/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eaf/alex-grey-9651_art_artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-ar_1160344.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Artists are most themselves when they are out of their minds, transcending the ego skirmishes of conceptual…” — Alex Grey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "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": "Alex Grey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-grey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Artists are most themselves when they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-are-out-of-their-minds/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-grey/artists-are-most-themselves-when-they-are-out-of-their-minds/#breadcrumb" }, { "@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 } } ] } ```