--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The artist should paint not only what he…" description: "\"The artist should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within him. If, however, he sees nothing within him, then he should als..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_art_the-artist-should-paint-not-only-what-he_2159382.png" --- # The artist should paint not only what he sees before him… ![“The artist should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within him. If, however, he sees nothing within him, then he should also refrain from painting that which he sees before him. Otherwise, his pictures will be like those folding screens behind which one expects to find…” quote by Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_art_the-artist-should-paint-not-only-what-he_2159382.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_art_the-artist-should-paint-not-only-what-he_2159382.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_art_the-artist-should-paint-not-only-what-he_2159382.png) > “The artist should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within him. If, however, he sees nothing within him, then he should also refrain from painting that which he sees before him. Otherwise, his pictures will be like those folding screens behind which one expects to find only the sick or the dead.” [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists should reflect both external reality and inner truth; lacking inner insight leads to shallow work. **In simple terms:** Paint what you see and feel; without feeling, art is empty. Key Takeaway Cultivate inner awareness before creating. Themes art self-awareness creativity Mood introspective inspirational Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - painting - writing - design Key Concepts authenticity inner vision artistic integrity Questions to Reflect On - What inner experiences inspire your best work? - How do you balance observation with imagination? A Different Perspective Artists may overemphasize technique and neglect emotion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) ## Related quotes > [The painter should paint not only what he has in front of him, but also what he sees inside himself. If he sees nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-painter-should-paint-not-only-what-he-has-in-front-of-him-but-2/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The painter should paint not only what he has in front of him, but also what he sees inside himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-painter-should-paint-not-only-what-he-has-in-front-of-him-but/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [“Painting it's a blind man profession. Painter is painting not what he sees but what he feels.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/painting-it-s-a-blind-man-profession-painter-is-painting-not-what-he/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Everybody has his own interpretation of a painting he sees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/everybody-has-his-own-interpretation-of-a-painting-he-sees/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [The painter should not paint what he sees, but what will be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-painter-should-not-paint-what-he-sees-but-what-will-be-seen/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) > [One must be of one's time and paint what one sees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-manet/one-must-be-of-one-s-time-and-paint-what-one-sees/) [Edouard Manet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-manet/) > [In my previous life, I was an artist. I still paint. I love art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edi-rama/in-my-previous-life-i-was-an-artist-i-still-paint-i-love-art/) [Edi Rama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edi-rama/) > [It is the work of the Canadian artist to paint or play or write in such a way that life will be enlarged for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-e-h-macdonald/it-is-the-work-of-the-canadian-artist-to-paint-or-play-or-write-in/) [J. E. H. MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-e-h-macdonald/) > [The artist can't paint, sing, or dance without emotion: if he does, he is a machine masquerading as a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/the-artist-can-t-paint-sing-or-dance-without-emotion-if-he-does-he-is/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [I am a commercial artist because I paint to earn a living. We who earn money from what we produce are all commercial artists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-white/i-am-a-commercial-artist-because-i-paint-to-earn-a-living-we-who-earn/) [Jack White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-white/) > [The key is what is within the artist. The artist can only paint what she or he is about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-krasner/the-key-is-what-is-within-the-artist-the-artist-can-only-paint-what/) [Lee Krasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-krasner/) > [A great artist can paint a great picture on a small canvas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dudley-warner/a-great-artist-can-paint-a-great-picture-on-a-small-canvas/) [Charles Dudley Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dudley-warner/) > [How would you paint me? If you were a artist how would you paint me? With deep solid strokes or your brush sweeping softly?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-ann-martine/how-would-you-paint-me-if-you-were-a-artist-how-would-you-paint-me/) [Christy Ann Martine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-ann-martine/) > [An artist can go paint, and a writer can go write, but an actor needs to get hired, needs somebody to say, 'Here, come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-glover/an-artist-can-go-paint-and-a-writer-can-go-write-but-an-actor-needs/) [John Glover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-glover/) > [“... an artist should paint from the heart, and not always what people expect. Predictability often leads to the dullest work, in my opinion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-artist-should-paint-from-the-heart-and-not-always-what-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Caspar David Friedrich > [God is everywhere, in the smallest grain of sand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/god-is-everywhere-in-the-smallest-grain-of-sand/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [“I must stay alone and know that I am alone to contemplate and feel nature in full; I have to surrender myself to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-must-stay-alone-and-know-that-i-am-alone-to-contemplate-and-feel/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The painter should paint not only what he has in front of him, but also what he sees inside himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-painter-should-paint-not-only-what-he-has-in-front-of-him-but/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [If he sees nothing within, then he should stop painting what is in front of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/if-he-sees-nothing-within-then-he-should-stop-painting-what-is-in/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [I have to stay alone in order to fully contemplate and feel nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-have-to-stay-alone-in-order-to-fully-contemplate-and-feel-nature/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [“Why, it has often occurred to me to ask myself, do I so frequently choose death, transience, and the grave as subjects for my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/why-it-has-often-occurred-to-me-to-ask-myself-do-i-so-frequently/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [I am not so weak as to submit to the demands of the age when they go against my convictions. I spin a cocoon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-am-not-so-weak-as-to-submit-to-the-demands-of-the-age-when-they-go/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [Close your bodily eye, that you may see your picture first with the eye of the spirit. Then bring to light what you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/close-your-bodily-eye-that-you-may-see-your-picture-first-with-the/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The feelings of another person should never be imposed upon us as a law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-feelings-of-another-person-should-never-be-imposed-upon-us-as-a/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [What the newer landscape artists see in a circle of a hundred degrees in Nature they press together unmercifully into an angle of vision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/what-the-newer-landscape-artists-see-in-a-circle-of-a-hundred-degrees/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [You call me a misanthrope because I avoid society. You err; I love society. Yet in order not to hate people, I must avoid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/you-call-me-a-misanthrope-because-i-avoid-society-you-err-i-love/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [I must stay alone and know that I am alone to contemplate and feel nature in full; I have to surrender myself to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-must-stay-alone-and-know-that-i-am-alone-to-contemplate-and-feel-2/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The eye and fantasy feel more attracted by nebulous distance than by that which is close and distinct in front of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-eye-and-fantasy-feel-more-attracted-by-nebulous-distance-than-by/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [When a scene is shrouded in mist, it seems greater, nobler, and heightens the viewers' imaginative powers, increasing expectation - like a veiled girl.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/when-a-scene-is-shrouded-in-mist-it-seems-greater-nobler-and/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [A painting which does not take its inspiration from the heart is nothing more than futile juggling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/a-painting-which-does-not-take-its-inspiration-from-the-heart-is/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) [Explore all 23 Caspar David Friedrich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) ## 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": "The artist should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within him. 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