--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Painters work from the ground up. The…" description: "\"Painters work from the ground up. The latest version of a painting overlays earlier versions, and obliterates them. Writers, on the other hand, work fr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/annie-dillard-509_chapters_painters-work-from-the-ground-up-the-lat_994521.jpg" --- # Painters work from the ground up. The latest version of a… ![“Painters work from the ground up. The latest version of a painting overlays earlier versions, and obliterates them. Writers, on the other hand, work from left to right. The discardable chapters are on the left.” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/annie-dillard-509_chapters_painters-work-from-the-ground-up-the-lat_994521.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/annie-dillard-509_chapters_painters-work-from-the-ground-up-the-lat_994521.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/annie-dillard-509_chapters_painters-work-from-the-ground-up-the-lat_994521.jpg) > “Painters work from the ground up. The latest version of a painting overlays earlier versions, and obliterates them. Writers, on the other hand, work from left to right. The discardable chapters are on the left.” [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative work builds upon and replaces earlier attempts, reflecting an iterative refinement. **In simple terms:** Creation replaces earlier attempts. Key Takeaway Embrace iteration. Themes creativity process iteration learning growth Mood analytical thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - software development - visual arts - academic research - product design - personal journaling Key Concepts cognitive psychology artistic development writing theory Questions to Reflect On - What can you keep from earlier drafts? - How do you decide when to discard? A Different Perspective Iteration can discard valuable insights; balance is needed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Chapters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chapters/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Painter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painter/) [Painters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painters/) [Painters Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painters-work-491335/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Version Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/version-painting-2058341/) [Versions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/versions/) [Work Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-left-655401/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Most modern painters work from a different source. They work from within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-pollock/most-modern-painters-work-from-a-different-source-they-work-from/) [Jackson Pollock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-pollock/) > [Today painters do not have to go to a subject matter outside of themselves. Most modern painters work from a different source. They work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-pollock/today-painters-do-not-have-to-go-to-a-subject-matter-outside-of/) [Jackson Pollock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-pollock/) > [The house was as empty as a beer closet in premises where painters have been at work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-house-was-as-empty-as-a-beer-closet-in-premises-where-painters/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [The chips are in production, the machines aren't. So we've got a little bit of work left to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-allard/the-chips-are-in-production-the-machines-aren-t-so-we-ve-got-a-little/) [J Allard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-allard/) > [Having a 9-to-5 workday in which work is left behind when one leaves the office is no longer the norm as employers expect employees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-d-friedman/having-a-9-to-5-workday-in-which-work-is-left-behind-when-one-leaves/) [Stewart D. Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-d-friedman/) > [“There's always a piece of unfinished work left, but I suppose there is always someone to finish it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-maud-montgomery/there-s-always-a-piece-of-unfinished-work-left-but-i-suppose-there-is/) [Lucy Maud Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-maud-montgomery/) > [“Work left undone for years affects people's moods, their feelings about themselves, their ability to work creatively, and their hopes for the future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danelle-morton/work-left-undone-for-years-affects-people-s-moods-their-feelings/) [Danelle Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danelle-morton/) > [. . . work even when I'm satisfied with it is never my child I love nor my servant I've brought to heel. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-benedict/work-even-when-i-m-satisfied-with-it-is-never-my-child-i-love-nor-my/) [Ruth Benedict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-benedict/) > [Temptation is God's magnifying glass; it shows us how much work he has left to do in our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/temptation-is-god-s-magnifying-glass-it-shows-us-how-much-work-he-has/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [Can anything be sadder than work left unfinished? Yes, work never begun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-rossetti/can-anything-be-sadder-than-work-left-unfinished-yes-work-never-begun/) [Christina Rossetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-rossetti/) > [There is so much work left to be done in the world and for me, I am hoping to make the change I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-woodson/there-is-so-much-work-left-to-be-done-in-the-world-and-for-me-i-am/) [Jacqueline Woodson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-woodson/) > [My work is done; I have nothing left to do but to go to my Father.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selina-hastings-countess-of-huntingdon/my-work-is-done-i-have-nothing-left-to-do-but-to-go-to-my-father/) [Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/selina-hastings-countess-of-huntingdon/) > [Painters are noted for being dissipated and wild.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/painters-are-noted-for-being-dissipated-and-wild/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [I like to move among painters, mathematicians, psychologists, people who can tell me something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-woodcock/i-like-to-move-among-painters-mathematicians-psychologists-people-who/) [George Woodcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-woodcock/) > [Sometimes I envy painters, it is wonderful to remain in front of a bouquet of flowers a whole morning, or even longer. A photographer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-boubat/sometimes-i-envy-painters-it-is-wonderful-to-remain-in-front-of-a/) [Edouard Boubat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-boubat/) ## More by Annie Dillard > [Like everyone in his right mind, I feared Santa Claus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/like-everyone-in-his-right-mind-i-feared-santa-claus/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“This is a spendthrift economy; though nothing is lost, all is spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/this-is-a-spendthrift-economy-though-nothing-is-lost-all-is-spent/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The creatures I seek do not want to be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-creatures-i-seek-do-not-want-to-be-seen/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [Nothing moves a woman so deeply as the boyhood of the man she loves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/nothing-moves-a-woman-so-deeply-as-the-boyhood-of-the-man-she-loves/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [We live in all we seek. The hidden shows up in too-plain sight. It lives captive on the face of the obvious - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-live-in-all-we-seek-the-hidden-shows-up-in-too-plain-sight-it/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“...The mockingbird took a single step into the air and dropped. His wings were still folded against his sides as though he were singing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-mockingbird-took-a-single-step-into-the-air-and-dropped-his-wings/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“Father had stretched out his long legs and was tilting back in his chair. Mother sat with her knees crossed, in blue slacks, smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/father-had-stretched-out-his-long-legs-and-was-tilting-back-in-his/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-frayed-and-nibbled-survivor-in-a-fallen-world-and-i-am-getting/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-is-madness-to-wear-ladies-straw-hats-and-velvet-hats-to-church-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The sense impressions of one-celled animals are not edited for the brain. This is philosophically interesting in a rather mournful way, since it means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-sense-impressions-of-one-celled-animals-are-not-edited-for-the/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“What can we make of the inexpressible joy of children? It is a kind of gratitude, I think—the gratitude of the ten-year-old who wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-can-we-make-of-the-inexpressible-joy-of-children-it-is-a-kind-of/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“If we were to judge nature by its common sense or likelihood, we wouldn't believe the world existed. In nature, improbabilities are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/if-we-were-to-judge-nature-by-its-common-sense-or-likelihood-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [For writing a first draft requires from the writer a peculiar internal state which ordinary life does not induce. ... how to set yourself spinning?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/for-writing-a-first-draft-requires-from-the-writer-a-peculiar/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-fugitive-and-a-vagabond-a-sojourner-seeking-signs/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) [Explore all 509 Annie Dillard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [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 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/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Painters work from the ground up. The latest version of a painting overlays earlier versions, and obliterates them. Writers, on the other hand, work from left to right. 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