--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No artifact is a work of art if it does…" description: "\"No artifact is a work of art if it does not help to humanize us. Without art...our world would have remained a jungle.\" — Bernard Berenson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dae/bernard-berenson-14318_art_no-artifact-is-a-work-of-art-if-it-does_1520562.jpg" --- # No artifact is a work of art if it does not help to… ![“No artifact is a work of art if it does not help to humanize us. Without art...our world would have remained a jungle.” quote by Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dae/bernard-berenson-14318_art_no-artifact-is-a-work-of-art-if-it-does_1520562.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dae/bernard-berenson-14318_art_no-artifact-is-a-work-of-art-if-it-does_1520562.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dae/bernard-berenson-14318_art_no-artifact-is-a-work-of-art-if-it-does_1520562.jpg) > “No artifact is a work of art if it does not help to humanize us. Without art...our world would have remained a jungle.” [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art must connect to humanity; without that link, objects remain mere artifacts, not true works of art. **In simple terms:** Art needs a human connection to be art. Key Takeaway Create art that speaks to human experience. Themes humanity art connection meaning Mood reflective inspired Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - museum curation - public installations - educational programs - community workshops Key Concepts Aesthetics humanism cultural impact Questions to Reflect On - How can art be made more inclusive? - What role does empathy play in artistic creation? A Different Perspective Art can be inaccessible if overly abstract or elitist. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artifact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artifact/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Jungle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jungle/) [Our world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-world/) [Works of art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/works-of-art/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [A book is more than the sum of its materials. It is an artifact of the human mind and hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/a-book-is-more-than-the-sum-of-its-materials-it-is-an-artifact-of-the/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [The book itself is a curious artifact, not showy in its technology but complex and extremely efficient: a really neat little device, compact, often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/the-book-itself-is-a-curious-artifact-not-showy-in-its-technology-but-2/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Anyone who has lived Is an historian & an artifact, For they hold all their time within them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-gorman/anyone-who-has-lived-is-an-historian-an-artifact-for-they-hold-all/) [Amanda Gorman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-gorman/) > [In Tetrad form, the artifact is seen to be not neutral or passive, bur an active logos or utterance of the human mind or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/in-tetrad-form-the-artifact-is-seen-to-be-not-neutral-or-passive-bur/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [If you make something, it's an artifact. It's something that somebody or some corporate entity has caused to come into being. A great many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/if-you-make-something-it-s-an-artifact-it-s-something-that-somebody/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [Wine is not discovered but made: it is an artifact that can be appraised that can be appraised aesthetically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-crane/wine-is-not-discovered-but-made-it-is-an-artifact-that-can-be/) [Tim Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-crane/) > [I believe in the city as a natural human environment, but we must humanize it. It's art that will re-define public space in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-gormley/i-believe-in-the-city-as-a-natural-human-environment-but-we-must/) [Antony Gormley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-gormley/) > [Luxury, not necessity, is the mother of invention. Every artifact is somewhat wanting in its function, and that is what drives its evolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-petroski/luxury-not-necessity-is-the-mother-of-invention-every-artifact-is/) [Henry Petroski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-petroski/) > [History is just this froth of artifact production that has appeared in the last ten to fifteen thousand years. It spread across the planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/history-is-just-this-froth-of-artifact-production-that-has-appeared/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [“Let's just call it an artifact of a misspent youth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-weeks/let-s-just-call-it-an-artifact-of-a-misspent-youth/) [Brent Weeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-weeks/) > [The novel is an artifact, which is why antiquarians cling to it so fervently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-shields/the-novel-is-an-artifact-which-is-why-antiquarians-cling-to-it-so/) [David Shields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-shields/) > [“It’s the invention of clothes, not nature, that made “private parts” private.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/it-s-the-invention-of-clothes-not-nature-that-made-private-parts/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“Parcifal is one of those corkscrew artifact of culture in which you get the subjective sense that you've learned something from it, something valuable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/parcifal-is-one-of-those-corkscrew-artifact-of-culture-in-which-you/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [The smallest detail can contribute to the whole, I think particularly with emotion, you want it to be as authentic as it can, whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-weir/the-smallest-detail-can-contribute-to-the-whole-i-think-particularly/) [Peter Weir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-weir/) > [“A.: Whatever; you must know how it works. An artifact containing... raw feelings, unprocessed sights and sounds and pains that the brain interprets- is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-cantero/a-whatever-you-must-know-how-it-works-an-artifact-containing-raw/) [Edgar Cantero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-cantero/) ## More by Bernard Berenson > [The ultimate justification of the work of art is to help the spectator to become a work of art himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-ultimate-justification-of-the-work-of-art-is-to-help-the/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [Boast is always a cry of despair, except in the young it is a cry of hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/boast-is-always-a-cry-of-despair-except-in-the-young-it-is-a-cry-of/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [I would willingly stand at street corners, hat in hand, begging passerby to drop their unused minutes into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-would-willingly-stand-at-street-corners-hat-in-hand-begging/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [I would I could stand on a busy corner, hat in hand, and beg people to throw me all their wasted hours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-would-i-could-stand-on-a-busy-corner-hat-in-hand-and-beg-people-to/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [Literature in its most comprehensive sense is the autobiography of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/literature-in-its-most-comprehensive-sense-is-the-autobiography-of/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [From childhood on I have had the dream of life lived as a sacrament... the dream implied taking life ritually as something holy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/from-childhood-on-i-have-had-the-dream-of-life-lived-as-a-sacrament/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [The artist, depicting man disdainful of the storm and stress of life, is no less reconciling and healing than the poet who, while endowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-artist-depicting-man-disdainful-of-the-storm-and-stress-of-life/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [The Renaissance had resulted in the emancipation of the individual, in making him feel that the universe had no other purpose than his happiness.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-renaissance-had-resulted-in-the-emancipation-of-the-individual-in/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [Who will free me from hurry, flurry, the feeling of a crowd pushing behind me, of being hustled and crushed? How can I regain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/who-will-free-me-from-hurry-flurry-the-feeling-of-a-crowd-pushing/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [I walk in the garden, I look at the flowers and shrubs and trees and discover in them an exquisiteness of contour, a vitality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-walk-in-the-garden-i-look-at-the-flowers-and-shrubs-and-trees-and/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [“A complete life may be one ending in so full identification with the non-self that there is no self to die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/a-complete-life-may-be-one-ending-in-so-full-identification-with-the/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is based on a common interest, and the greater the interest the closer the companionship. What makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/enemies-could-become-the-best-companions-companionship-is-based-on-a/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [Pessimism like calumny is easy to do, and attracts immediate attention. The gossiper and the writer may find this out soon enough, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/pessimism-like-calumny-is-easy-to-do-and-attracts-immediate-attention/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [The average European does not seem to feel free until he succeeds in enslaving and oppressing others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-average-european-does-not-seem-to-feel-free-until-he-succeeds-in/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [I am only a picture-taster, the way others are wine-or tea-tasters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-am-only-a-picture-taster-the-way-others-are-wine-or-tea-tasters/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) [Explore all 47 Bernard Berenson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) ## 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. 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