--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've never been a representational artist…" description: "\"I've never been a representational artist at all. Most artists have been representational. That's when you discover yourself.\" — Carl Andre" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c32/carl-andre-12004_art_i-ve-never-been-a-representational-artis_1604642.jpg" --- # I've never been a representational artist at all. Most… ![“I've never been a representational artist at all. Most artists have been representational. That's when you discover yourself.” quote by Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c32/carl-andre-12004_art_i-ve-never-been-a-representational-artis_1604642.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c32/carl-andre-12004_art_i-ve-never-been-a-representational-artis_1604642.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c32/carl-andre-12004_art_i-ve-never-been-a-representational-artis_1604642.jpg) > “I've never been a representational artist at all. Most artists have been representational. That's when you discover yourself.” [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects on being non‑representational, noting most artists are representational, and suggests self‑discovery occurs through this distinction. **In simple terms:** Non‑representational art reveals self. Key Takeaway Explore beyond literal representation. Themes art identity creativity Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - gallery visits - creative workshops - personal projects - art education Key Concepts self‑discovery artistic style Questions to Reflect On - How does your medium shape you? - Do you feel constrained by expectations? A Different Perspective It may not hold for all artists. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artist Artists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist-artists-712315/) [Artists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artists/) [Artists Representational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artists-representational-6107718/) [Discover Yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discover-yourself/) [Discovering yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovering-yourself/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Over you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over-you/) [Representational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/representational-604025/) [Representational Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/representational-artist-6107717/) ## Related quotes > [While it is nice to be discovered, it's much better to discover yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-myers/while-it-is-nice-to-be-discovered-it-s-much-better-to-discover/) [Mike Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-myers/) > [You discover yourself through the research of your work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carine-roitfeld/you-discover-yourself-through-the-research-of-your-work/) [Carine Roitfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carine-roitfeld/) > [Self-knowledge involves relationship. To know oneself is to study one self in action with another person. Relationship is a process of self evaluation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/self-knowledge-involves-relationship-to-know-oneself-is-to-study-one/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [We are empty shells if we do not possess, if we do not fill our life with furniture, with music, with knowledge, with this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/we-are-empty-shells-if-we-do-not-possess-if-we-do-not-fill-our-life-2/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [Explore your mind, discover yourself, then give the best that is in you to your age and to your world. There are heroic possibilities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/explore-your-mind-discover-yourself-then-give-the-best-that-is-in-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Now, it is much more difficult for young people coming to New York. But also when you're young, you have more time to interact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiki-smith/now-it-is-much-more-difficult-for-young-people-coming-to-new-york-but/) [Kiki Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiki-smith/) > [Relationship is the mirror in which you discover yourself - to be is to be related.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/relationship-is-the-mirror-in-which-you-discover-yourself-to-be-is-to/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [Once you grow up and discover yourself as a human being you look at things for what they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/once-you-grow-up-and-discover-yourself-as-a-human-being-you-look-at/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [“As long as you perceive that anyone is holding you back, you have not taken full responsibility for your own liberation. Liberation means that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adyashanti/as-long-as-you-perceive-that-anyone-is-holding-you-back-you-have-not/) [Adyashanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adyashanti/) > [Discover yourself, otherwise you have to depend on other people's opinions who don't know themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/discover-yourself-otherwise-you-have-to-depend-on-other-people-s/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [If you feel lost, disappointed, hesitant, or weak, return to yourself, to who you are, here and now and when you get there, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masaru-emoto/if-you-feel-lost-disappointed-hesitant-or-weak-return-to-yourself-to/) [Masaru Emoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masaru-emoto/) > [I'm my own artist, and I see artists as movies. No one should try to change them for anything. If you don't like it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zedd/i-m-my-own-artist-and-i-see-artists-as-movies-no-one-should-try-to/) [Zedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zedd/) > [...why is an artist an artist? Artists simply do feel and see things in a different way to other people. In a way it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/why-is-an-artist-an-artist-artists-simply-do-feel-and-see-things-in-a/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [I wanted to be a "serious artist." Serious artists didn't tend to be funny. But that didn't get me a lot of attention. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-bell/i-wanted-to-be-a-serious-artist-serious-artists-didn-t-tend-to-be/) [Gabrielle Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-bell/) > [It's interesting to see the world's fascination with a troubled artist. The artists sure wouldn't share their enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rowe/it-s-interesting-to-see-the-world-s-fascination-with-a-troubled/) [Jim Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rowe/) ## More by Carl Andre > [The girls you picked up from the bars were not the girls you took home to mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/the-girls-you-picked-up-from-the-bars-were-not-the-girls-you-took/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [I think it was Henry Moore who was asked where he got his ideas for his sculptures, and he said something like, "I continue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/i-think-it-was-henry-moore-who-was-asked-where-he-got-his-ideas-for/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [I didn't like men because they were so physically competitive. Men are always making a pecking order. "I can beat you up and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/i-didn-t-like-men-because-they-were-so-physically-competitive-men-are/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [An artist, to achieve anything in art, has to finally do the thing that nobody else wants to do and nobody else has thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/an-artist-to-achieve-anything-in-art-has-to-finally-do-the-thing-that/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [What I made depended on what I found on the street. At least in the beginning, my materials came from the street.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/what-i-made-depended-on-what-i-found-on-the-street-at-least-in-the/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [Americans understand better than the Europeans and the English that any publicity is good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/americans-understand-better-than-the-europeans-and-the-english-that/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [When I came to New York, it was cheap!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/when-i-came-to-new-york-it-was-cheap/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [The wood was better before I cut it, than after. I did not improve it in any way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/the-wood-was-better-before-i-cut-it-than-after-i-did-not-improve-it/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [Lenin thought abstract art was a conspiracy by the bourgeois to demoralize the proletariat. Yeah, socialist realism!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/lenin-thought-abstract-art-was-a-conspiracy-by-the-bourgeois-to/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [Money is a very complicated problem. The history of money is very curious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/money-is-a-very-complicated-problem-the-history-of-money-is-very/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [I grew up in a brick house. What's wrong with bricks? An Englishman took me aside and said, "You have to understand, all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/i-grew-up-in-a-brick-house-what-s-wrong-with-bricks-an-englishman/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [I never stopped doing what I did as a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/i-never-stopped-doing-what-i-did-as-a-child/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [Every time you work, you have to do it all over again, to rid yourself of this dross. I suppose for a person who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/every-time-you-work-you-have-to-do-it-all-over-again-to-rid-yourself/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [A place is an area within an environment that has been altered in such a way to make the general environment more conspicuous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/a-place-is-an-area-within-an-environment-that-has-been-altered-in/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [I'm a feminist. I've always been in favor of women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/i-m-a-feminist-i-ve-always-been-in-favor-of-women/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) [Explore all 57 Carl Andre quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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've never been a representational artist at all. 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