--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They had assumed this photography thing…" description: "\"“They had assumed this photography thing was an adolescent phase, like boy chasing, or vegetarianism. What else had they worked so hard for all these y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg" --- # They had assumed this photography thing was an adolescent… ![“They had assumed this photography thing was an adolescent phase, like boy chasing, or vegetarianism. What else had they worked so hard for all these years? For Mia to throw their money away on art school?” quote by Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg) > ““They had assumed this photography thing was an adolescent phase, like boy chasing, or vegetarianism. What else had they worked so hard for all these years? For Mia to throw their money away on art school?”” [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage critiques dismissive attitudes toward artistic pursuits, questioning why people undervalue art education. **In simple terms:** People often dismiss art as frivolous. Key Takeaway Value artistic education. Themes art education societal perception generational attitudes Mood critical inquisitive Type literary social commentary When to use this quote - parent‑teacher meetings - school board discussions - career counseling - public debates Key Concepts cultural value education policy creative expression Questions to Reflect On - Why do we undervalue creative fields? - How can we shift perceptions? A Different Perspective Art may be seen as non‑practical. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adolescent Phase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescent-phase-2921251/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-school/) [Assumed Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assumed-photography-2921249/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Photography Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography-thing-647278/) [Thing Adolescent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-adolescent-2921250/) ## Related quotes > [Political correctness and so many of the political fashions of the day...could only be perpetrated in adolescent minds: minds, that is, that are trained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-epstein/political-correctness-and-so-many-of-the-political-fashions-of-the/) [Joseph Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-epstein/) > [Photography was the only thing that mattered in my life and I gave it everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-corbijn/photography-was-the-only-thing-that-mattered-in-my-life-and-i-gave-it/) [Anton Corbijn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-corbijn/) > [In this, photography is the same thing as love. When my gaze, diving into the sea as my subject, converges with the act of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shomei-tomatsu/in-this-photography-is-the-same-thing-as-love-when-my-gaze-diving/) [Shomei Tomatsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shomei-tomatsu/) > [I also paint, draw and I'm into film and photography as well, and the same thing applies to all of them. You're presenting this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kane/i-also-paint-draw-and-i-m-into-film-and-photography-as-well-and-the/) [Paul Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kane/) > [It's possible to think of photography as an act of editing, a matter of where you put your rectangle pull it out or take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kenna/it-s-possible-to-think-of-photography-as-an-act-of-editing-a-matter/) [Michael Kenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-kenna/) > [It's all the same. It's the same face. We always look for an idea, for the same face, for the same position. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malick-sidibe/it-s-all-the-same-it-s-the-same-face-we-always-look-for-an-idea-for/) [Malick Sidibe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malick-sidibe/) > [Photography is not about the thing photographed. It is about how that thing looks photographed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-winogrand/photography-is-not-about-the-thing-photographed-it-is-about-how-that/) [Garry Winogrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-winogrand/) > [The challenge of photography is to show the thing photographed so that our feelings are awakened and hidden aspects are revealed to us](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/the-challenge-of-photography-is-to-show-the-thing-photographed-so/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [“The less evidence of extrinsic motivation during art school, the more success in professional art both several years after graduation and nearly twenty years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-h-pink/the-less-evidence-of-extrinsic-motivation-during-art-school-the-more/) [Daniel H. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-h-pink/) > [A lot of people, even my parents, thought, "Art school, I don't know. We'll support you but the success rate for artists is really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-mcginley/a-lot-of-people-even-my-parents-thought-art-school-i-don-t-know-we-ll/) [Ryan McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-mcginley/) > [I studied realism when I was in art school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-max/i-studied-realism-when-i-was-in-art-school/) [Peter Max](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-max/) > [I got alright GCSEs, but I was lost. I didn't know what to do, whether to continue with education, go to uni, go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-krule/i-got-alright-gcses-but-i-was-lost-i-didn-t-know-what-to-do-whether/) [King Krule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-krule/) > [It was only after I had been out of the art school that I actually copied a small Seurat, and I copied it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-riley/it-was-only-after-i-had-been-out-of-the-art-school-that-i-actually/) [Bridget Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-riley/) > [It was very hard breaking into the film industry in Britain. I had been to art school, and I was painting and doing commercials.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-scott/it-was-very-hard-breaking-into-the-film-industry-in-britain-i-had/) [Tony Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-scott/) > [I did go to a performing arts school, so that facilitated my creativity, though I ended up going in a more musical direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-did-go-to-a-performing-arts-school-so-that-facilitated-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Celeste Ng > [When you mention to people growing up in Cleveland they bring up the river catching on fire, or LeBron James leaving, they have these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/when-you-mention-to-people-growing-up-in-cleveland-they-bring-up-the/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [It's so easy, as a writer, to get stuck in your own head, to live in the little worlds you create. To forget that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/it-s-so-easy-as-a-writer-to-get-stuck-in-your-own-head-to-live-in-the/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“All up and down the street the houses looked like any others—but inside them were people who might be happy, or taking refuge, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/all-up-and-down-the-street-the-houses-looked-like-any-others-but/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [No reader wants to sit through the same scene four times in a row, unless they're radically different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/no-reader-wants-to-sit-through-the-same-scene-four-times-in-a-row/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Debut novels are difficult because nobody knows you... they just don't find a huge audience, because that's how the market works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/debut-novels-are-difficult-because-nobody-knows-you-they-just-don-t/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [We have to figure out why we see the world in different ways and then how are we going to adjust so that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/we-have-to-figure-out-why-we-see-the-world-in-different-ways-and-then/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“I have measured my life with coffee spoons and do I dare to eat a peach?' 'DO I DARE DISTURB THE UNIVERSE?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/i-have-measured-my-life-with-coffee-spoons-and-do-i-dare-to-eat-a/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“No one, she had learned from experience, could stand such silence for long. If you waited long enough, someone would start talking, and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/no-one-she-had-learned-from-experience-could-stand-such-silence-for/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“Most of the time, everyone deserves more than one chance. We all do things we regret now and then. You just have to carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/most-of-the-time-everyone-deserves-more-than-one-chance-we-all-do/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“Though she would never quite articulate it this way, resentment began to sheathe concern. ANGER IS FEAR'S BODYGUARD, a poster in the hospital hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/though-she-would-never-quite-articulate-it-this-way-resentment-began/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Spend too much time alone with your own words, and your writing grows anemic, in dire need of a transfusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/spend-too-much-time-alone-with-your-own-words-and-your-writing-grows/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“Everyone sees race, Lex," said Moody. "The only difference is who pretends not to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/everyone-sees-race-lex-said-moody-the-only-difference-is-who-pretends/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Writers, most of them, don't have a lot of resources.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/writers-most-of-them-don-t-have-a-lot-of-resources/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Browse Amazon reviews, and you'll see a surprising number of readers who believe one novel can summarize a country, its culture, and its people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/browse-amazon-reviews-and-you-ll-see-a-surprising-number-of-readers/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Short of the dishonest, the illegal, and the cruel, there's only one thing my son could do that would really disappoint me: not liking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/short-of-the-dishonest-the-illegal-and-the-cruel-there-s-only-one/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) [Explore all 212 Celeste Ng quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) ## 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": "“They had assumed this photography thing was an adolescent phase, like boy chasing, or vegetarianism. What else had they worked so hard for all these years? For Mia to throw their money away on art school?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Celeste Ng" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing-was-an-adolescent-phase-like/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing-was-an-adolescent-phase-like/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1d/celeste-ng-1718_art_they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing_1105704.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They had assumed this photography thing was an adolescent phase, like boy chasing, or vegetarianism. What…” — Celeste Ng", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Celeste Ng", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“They had assumed this photography thing...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing-was-an-adolescent-phase-like/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/they-had-assumed-this-photography-thing-was-an-adolescent-phase-like/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```