--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Art is longing. You never arrive, but you…" description: "\"Art is longing. You never arrive, but you keep going in the hope that you will.\" — Anselm Kiefer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/anselm-kiefer-19043_art_art-is-longing-you-never-arrive-but-you_2648454.png" --- # Art is longing. You never arrive, but you keep going in… ![“Art is longing. You never arrive, but you keep going in the hope that you will.” quote by Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/anselm-kiefer-19043_art_art-is-longing-you-never-arrive-but-you_2648454.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/anselm-kiefer-19043_art_art-is-longing-you-never-arrive-but-you_2648454.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/anselm-kiefer-19043_art_art-is-longing-you-never-arrive-but-you_2648454.png) > “Art is longing. You never arrive, but you keep going in the hope that you will.” [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art is an endless longing that drives continual creation despite never fully arriving. **In simple terms:** Art fuels perpetual longing. Key Takeaway Embrace the journey of creation. Themes art longing process Mood melancholic hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - studio practice - art installations Key Concepts existentialism creative drive Questions to Reflect On - What does the longing inspire? - How do you cope with unfulfilled desire? A Different Perspective Never reaching a goal can cause frustration. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) ## Related quotes > [“For the moment she was caught between the two worlds, neither one thing nor another. She would be sorry to let the former depart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-grange/for-the-moment-she-was-caught-between-the-two-worlds-neither-one/) [Amanda Grange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-grange/) > [I agree with Schopenhauer that one of the most powerful motives that attracts people to science and art is the longing to escape from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/i-agree-with-schopenhauer-that-one-of-the-most-powerful-motives-that/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The art of longing's over, and it's never coming back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/the-art-of-longing-s-over-and-it-s-never-coming-back/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [Not all lies are bad, sometimes they are made to keep you going and to give you hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/missyrie/not-all-lies-are-bad-sometimes-they-are-made-to-keep-you-going-and-to/) Missyrie > [Hope is what keeps you going, but hope keeps you focused on the future, and this continued focus perpetuates your denial of the Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hope-is-what-keeps-you-going-but-hope-keeps-you-focused-on-the-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You keep going, and you hope for the best, and sometimes, maybe not very often, your hopes come true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-johnson/you-keep-going-and-you-hope-for-the-best-and-sometimes-maybe-not-very/) [Craig Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-johnson/) > [I hope I'm exactly what America is looking for, I don't know, I'm just going to be myself and hope that they love it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-alaina/i-hope-i-m-exactly-what-america-is-looking-for-i-don-t-know-i-m-just/) [Lauren Alaina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-alaina/) > [“Anger gets me going. Hope sustains me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-stabile/anger-gets-me-going-hope-sustains-me/) [Scott stabile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-stabile/) > [Just going to take these hope I die no one really cares about me anymore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge/just-going-to-take-these-hope-i-die-no-one-really-cares-about-me/) [Jorge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge/) > [If you're going to hope for a change, you'd better start to pray for a change. If you're just hoping, you ain't going anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-labonte/if-you-re-going-to-hope-for-a-change-you-d-better-start-to-pray-for-a/) Bobby Labonte > [“Tell ya what I'm gonna do, see. I'm not going to hope. Now, you don't either. Don't hope your life will get better. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-pritchett/tell-ya-what-i-m-gonna-do-see-i-m-not-going-to-hope-now-you-don-t/) [Laura Pritchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-pritchett/) > [“There's a lot of cheese where you're going, Hope. I'm not sure how this affects people long term.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-bauer/there-s-a-lot-of-cheese-where-you-re-going-hope-i-m-not-sure-how-this/) [Joan Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-bauer/) > [“I've just got to keep going and hope that one day, it starts to feel not quite as bad as it does now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-le-vann/i-ve-just-got-to-keep-going-and-hope-that-one-day-it-starts-to-feel/) [Kate le Vann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-le-vann/) > [“Hope was what kept the world going. Hope that one day you would find somebody you could love and trust, hope that you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-ford/hope-was-what-kept-the-world-going-hope-that-one-day-you-would-find/) Phil Ford > [“son," Mr. P said. "You're going to find more and more hope the farther and farther you walk away from this sad, sad, sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/son-mr-p-said-you-re-going-to-find-more-and-more-hope-the-farther-and/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## More by Anselm Kiefer > [Art really is something very difficult. It is difficult to make, and it is sometimes difficult for the viewer to understand. It is difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/art-really-is-something-very-difficult-it-is-difficult-to-make-and-it/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [What does the artist do? He draws connections. He ties the invisible threads between things. He dives into history, be it the history of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/what-does-the-artist-do-he-draws-connections-he-ties-the-invisible/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [History is formed by the people, those who have power and those without power. Each one of us makes history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/history-is-formed-by-the-people-those-who-have-power-and-those/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [Art is difficult. It's not entertainment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/art-is-difficult-it-s-not-entertainment/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [Art is difficult. It's not entertainment. There are only a few people who can say something about art - it's very restricted. When I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/art-is-difficult-it-s-not-entertainment-there-are-only-a-few-people/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [When knowledge becomes rigid, it stops living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/when-knowledge-becomes-rigid-it-stops-living/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [I might have been born into a very literal sense of chaos, but in fact that state is true of all of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/i-might-have-been-born-into-a-very-literal-sense-of-chaos-but-in-fact/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [I am against the idea of the end, that everything culminates in paradise or judgment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/i-am-against-the-idea-of-the-end-that-everything-culminates-in/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [Ruins, for me, are the beginning. With the debris, you can construct new ideas. They are symbols of a beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/ruins-for-me-are-the-beginning-with-the-debris-you-can-construct-new/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [I believe art has to take responsibility but it should not give up being art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/i-believe-art-has-to-take-responsibility-but-it-should-not-give-up/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [I am of the opinion that there are artists and non-artists. I think that this is the way it always was and always will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/i-am-of-the-opinion-that-there-are-artists-and-non-artists-i-think/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [I was interested in transcendence from a very early age. I was interested in what was over there, what was behind life. So when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/i-was-interested-in-transcendence-from-a-very-early-age-i-was/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [Art maybe the only space where an indvidual can be utterly free to question himself, as well as his relationship to his God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/art-maybe-the-only-space-where-an-indvidual-can-be-utterly-free-to/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [If I do something that depresses, it's not because I'm depressed, but because political life and history is depressing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/if-i-do-something-that-depresses-it-s-not-because-i-m-depressed-but/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) > [Because of my Calvinistic upbringing, I was trained to think that what you do has to have a purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anselm-kiefer/because-of-my-calvinistic-upbringing-i-was-trained-to-think-that-what/) [Anselm Kiefer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) [Explore all 33 Anselm Kiefer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anselm-kiefer/) ## 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": "Art is longing. 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