--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I just try to get away with as much as I…" description: "\"I just try to get away with as much as I can. I don't think that's very radical in the art world.\" — Barry McGee" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/222/barry-mcgee-23113_art_i-just-try-to-get-away-with-as-much-as-i_910724.jpg" --- # I just try to get away with as much as I can. I don't… ![“I just try to get away with as much as I can. I don't think that's very radical in the art world.” quote by Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/222/barry-mcgee-23113_art_i-just-try-to-get-away-with-as-much-as-i_910724.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/222/barry-mcgee-23113_art_i-just-try-to-get-away-with-as-much-as-i_910724.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/222/barry-mcgee-23113_art_i-just-try-to-get-away-with-as-much-as-i_910724.jpg) > “I just try to get away with as much as I can. I don't think that's very radical in the art world.” [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker down his approach as pragmatic, not revolutionary, suggesting art can be about personal gain rather than ideology. **In simple terms:** He sees art as a personal hustle, not a radical statement. Key Takeaway Focus on personal goals, not just ideology. Themes art pragmatism personal gain Mood cynical reflective Type statement personal When to use this quote - gallery shows - artist residencies - selling prints - networking Key Concepts capitalism art market self‑interest Questions to Reflect On - How does personal gain affect artistic integrity? - Can art be both profitable and radical? A Different Perspective May overlook broader social impact of art. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-world/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Radical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radical/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Young people are more likely to be idealistic and think that radical change is both necessary and possible. They may not yet be stuck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/young-people-are-more-likely-to-be-idealistic-and-think-that-radical/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [ \[The photographs\] were there simply to indicate a radical art that had already vanished. The photograph was necessary only as a residue for communication. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-oppenheim/the-photographs-were-there-simply-to-indicate-a-radical-art-that-had/) [Dennis Oppenheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-oppenheim/) > [In retrospect I can see that my desire to create abstractions has become more and more radical. Art should not be delivering a report…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andreas-gursky/in-retrospect-i-can-see-that-my-desire-to-create-abstractions-has/) [Andreas Gursky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andreas-gursky/) > [“Left identitarians who think of themselves as radical creatures, contesting this and transgressing that, have become like buttoned-up Protestant schoolmarms when it comes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lilla/left-identitarians-who-think-of-themselves-as-radical-creatures/) [Mark Lilla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lilla/) > [I'm anti-establishment. So all the labels, the reason that I keep joking and rejecting this idea that I'm liberal, well partly that's because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-ayers/i-m-anti-establishment-so-all-the-labels-the-reason-that-i-keep/) [Bill Ayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-ayers/) > [I think I am a radical. I have never deviated from that. By radical, I mean someone trying to go to the root of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-ayers/i-think-i-am-a-radical-i-have-never-deviated-from-that-by-radical-i/) [Bill Ayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-ayers/) > [I think the most radical thing you can do is be yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo/i-think-the-most-radical-thing-you-can-do-is-be-yourself/) MO > [The minute what you think of as radical becomes an institutionalised, funded operation, you're in some trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-minute-what-you-think-of-as-radical-becomes-an-institutionalised/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I think one of the most radical things a girl can do is to own her body. And we learn so young not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/staceyann-chin/i-think-one-of-the-most-radical-things-a-girl-can-do-is-to-own-her/) [Staceyann Chin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/staceyann-chin/) > [I think it's radical to censor information because the government asks you to. That's radical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/i-think-it-s-radical-to-censor-information-because-the-government/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [I think it's much more radical to see and show things as they look instead of making them somehow subversive through alienation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-tillmans/i-think-it-s-much-more-radical-to-see-and-show-things-as-they-look/) [Wolfgang Tillmans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-tillmans/) > [“You know you have found your life mission when you say, “I dare you to try and take this away from me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/you-know-you-have-found-your-life-mission-when-you-say-i-dare-you-to/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [I need to try and get away from that brat role, or people are going to think I'm a natural brat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-poulter/i-need-to-try-and-get-away-from-that-brat-role-or-people-are-going-to/) [Will Poulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-poulter/) > [Your love is a part of you. You try to give it away because you cannot bear its radiance, but you cannot separate it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gnarls-barkley/your-love-is-a-part-of-you-you-try-to-give-it-away-because-you-cannot/) [Gnarls Barkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gnarls-barkley/) > [“There will come a time when people decide you've had enough of your grief, and they'll try to take it away from you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-manguso/there-will-come-a-time-when-people-decide-you-ve-had-enough-of-your/) [Sarah Manguso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-manguso/) ## More by Barry McGee > [I love graffiti because it enables kids from every social extraction to do something that brings them closer to art, when they normally wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-love-graffiti-because-it-enables-kids-from-every-social-extraction/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [If I could get the respect of 14-year-olds, I'm happy. They're the toughest audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/if-i-could-get-the-respect-of-14-year-olds-i-m-happy-they-re-the/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [I like the idea that you can paint something outdoors, and anyone can see it. It's open to anyone, and people have to deal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-like-the-idea-that-you-can-paint-something-outdoors-and-anyone-can/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [Some of my favorite pieces are from thrift shops. When I find something I really love, I live, work and sleep in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/some-of-my-favorite-pieces-are-from-thrift-shops-when-i-find/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [That's immediately how I gauge how healthy a city is-by the amount of tags. It's just in direct competition with advertising. It's still one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/that-s-immediately-how-i-gauge-how-healthy-a-city-is-by-the-amount-of/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [Street artists need to get back to actually doing things on the streets instead of in the galleries where they all seem to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/street-artists-need-to-get-back-to-actually-doing-things-on-the/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [The parts of graffiti I like are really antagonizing still - it's not something that a museum would really embrace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/the-parts-of-graffiti-i-like-are-really-antagonizing-still-it-s-not/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [I want to do just, like, regular art. Whatever is made today on canvas goes up against all of art history. Its the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-want-to-do-just-like-regular-art-whatever-is-made-today-on-canvas/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [I read in a weird way. It comes in waves, and then I start, like, five different books at once. It takes me six…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-read-in-a-weird-way-it-comes-in-waves-and-then-i-start-like-five/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [As soon as I start reading, drawing comes to me more easily. I find I work in my sketchbooks more. But if I'm working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/as-soon-as-i-start-reading-drawing-comes-to-me-more-easily-i-find-i/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [I have tons of art books. I have them all over the place. They are in my car, in my bag, and in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-have-tons-of-art-books-i-have-them-all-over-the-place-they-are-in/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [Most inspiration still comes from bicycling around San Francisco. This city never fails to inspire me. It is one of the most vibrant cities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/most-inspiration-still-comes-from-bicycling-around-san-francisco-this/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [I see a really good tag on a building, a man passed out in the middle of the street, a couple hugging, a cop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-see-a-really-good-tag-on-a-building-a-man-passed-out-in-the-middle/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [For me, graffiti means making marks on surfaces using just about anything, be it markers, spray, paint, chalk, lipstick, varnish, ink. Or it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/for-me-graffiti-means-making-marks-on-surfaces-using-just-about/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) > [I'm really into California art from the '60s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mcgee/i-m-really-into-california-art-from-the-60s/) [Barry McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) [Explore all 26 Barry McGee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mcgee/) ## 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": "I just try to get away with as much as I can. 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