--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Do not let it look as if you reasoned too…" description: "\"Do not let it look as if you reasoned too much. Painting must be impulsive to be worth while.\" — Charles Webster Hawthorne" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/charles-webster-hawthorne-1729_artist_do-not-let-it-look-as-if-you-reasoned-to_862711.png" --- # Do not let it look as if you reasoned too much. Painting… ![“Do not let it look as if you reasoned too much. Painting must be impulsive to be worth while.” quote by Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/charles-webster-hawthorne-1729_artist_do-not-let-it-look-as-if-you-reasoned-to_862711.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/charles-webster-hawthorne-1729_artist_do-not-let-it-look-as-if-you-reasoned-to_862711.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/charles-webster-hawthorne-1729_artist_do-not-let-it-look-as-if-you-reasoned-to_862711.png) > “Do not let it look as if you reasoned too much. Painting must be impulsive to be worth while.” [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art should be spontaneous; over‑analysis diminishes its vitality. **In simple terms:** Paint impulsively, not overthink. Key Takeaway Prioritize instinct in creative work. Themes art creativity spontaneity intuition Mood inspired reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - painting workshops - creative brainstorming - design sessions - performance art Key Concepts improvisation artistic process Questions to Reflect On - When is planning beneficial in art? - How balance intuition with technique? A Different Perspective Excessive spontaneity may lead to lack of depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“Intelligent people while impulsive, worth less than one stone on the path”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ngel-s-ez-guti-rrez/intelligent-people-while-impulsive-worth-less-than-one-stone-on-the/) [Miguel Ángel Sáez Gutiérrez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ngel-s-ez-guti-rrez/) > [ It is so hard and long before a student comes to a realization that these \[first\] few large simple spots in right relations are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/it-is-so-hard-and-long-before-a-student-comes-to-a-realization-that/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Painting is just like making an after-dinner speech. If you want to be remembered, say one thing and stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/painting-is-just-like-making-an-after-dinner-speech-if-you-want-to-be/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [I think you have to sort of accept that nobody really knows where it's going so there has to be a lot of impulsive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/i-think-you-have-to-sort-of-accept-that-nobody-really-knows-where-it/) [Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/) > [A major cause of the Roman Empire's decline, after six centuries of world dominance was its replacement of stone aqueducts by lead pipes for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harris-l-coulter/a-major-cause-of-the-roman-empire-s-decline-after-six-centuries-of/) [Harris L Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harris-l-coulter/) > [Generations of thinkers have made typewriters their frenemies, and long before there were Gmail inboxes, print correspondence stacked up, some hastily written and impulsive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pilon/generations-of-thinkers-have-made-typewriters-their-frenemies-and/) [Mary Pilon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pilon/) > [I think I'm slightly impulsive, sometimes organised and always in search of a bargain!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-i-m-slightly-impulsive-sometimes-organised-and-always-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was kind of a misfit, actually. When you're young, you want to be like everybody else, and I was like nobody else. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howie-mandel/i-was-kind-of-a-misfit-actually-when-you-re-young-you-want-to-be-like/) [Howie Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howie-mandel/) > [We cannot know the young child's personality by studying his systems of interest, for his attention is as yet too labile, his reactions impulsive,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-cannot-know-the-young-child-s-personality-by-studying-his-systems/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Impulsive isn’t something you choose. It’s something you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-hubbard/impulsive-isn-t-something-you-choose-it-s-something-you-are/) [Kirsten Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-hubbard/) > [Music comes from the heart and returns to the heart... music is spontaneous, impulsive expression... its range is without limit... music is forever growing...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/music-comes-from-the-heart-and-returns-to-the-heart-music-is/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [Courage is impulsive; it is narcissism tempered with nihilism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayelet-waldman/courage-is-impulsive-it-is-narcissism-tempered-with-nihilism/) [Ayelet Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayelet-waldman/) > [“A lot of impulsive mistakes are made by people who simply aren’t willing to stay bored a little longer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-aurandt/a-lot-of-impulsive-mistakes-are-made-by-people-who-simply-aren-t/) Paul Aurandt > [I've always been impulsive. My thinking is usually pretty good, but I always seem to do it after I do my talking — by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/i-ve-always-been-impulsive-my-thinking-is-usually-pretty-good-but-i/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [More errors arise from inhibited indecision than from impulsive behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-l-ernst/more-errors-arise-from-inhibited-indecision-than-from-impulsive/) Morris L. Ernst ## More by Charles Webster Hawthorne > [ It is so hard and long before a student comes to a realization that these \[first\] few large simple spots in right relations are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/it-is-so-hard-and-long-before-a-student-comes-to-a-realization-that/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Painting is just like making an after-dinner speech. If you want to be remembered, say one thing and stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/painting-is-just-like-making-an-after-dinner-speech-if-you-want-to-be/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Spend a lifetime in hard work with a humble mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/spend-a-lifetime-in-hard-work-with-a-humble-mind/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [To see things simply is the hardest thing in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/to-see-things-simply-is-the-hardest-thing-in-the-world/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Do studies, not pictures. Know when you are licked - start another. Be alive, stop when your interest is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/do-studies-not-pictures-know-when-you-are-licked-start-another-be/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [A sketch has charm because of its truth - not because it is unfinished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/a-sketch-has-charm-because-of-its-truth-not-because-it-is-unfinished/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Avoid distant views, paint objects close up. If the foreground is well done the distance will take care of itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/avoid-distant-views-paint-objects-close-up-if-the-foreground-is-well/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Paint what you see, not what you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/paint-what-you-see-not-what-you-know/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [In his attempt to develop the beauty he sees, the artist develops himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/in-his-attempt-to-develop-the-beauty-he-sees-the-artist-develops/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Try to do ugly things so that you make them beautiful... The more delicate the thing is in nature the more one must look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/try-to-do-ugly-things-so-that-you-make-them-beautiful-the-more/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [By having the big lines of the composition going out of the canvas, your imagination can wander beyond the edge. It will make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/by-having-the-big-lines-of-the-composition-going-out-of-the-canvas/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [Get into the habit of doing what you see, not what you know. Human reason cannot foresee the accidents of out-of-doors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/get-into-the-habit-of-doing-what-you-see-not-what-you-know-human/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [We must all teach ourselves to be fine, to be poets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/we-must-all-teach-ourselves-to-be-fine-to-be-poets/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [The mechanics of putting one spot of color next to another, that is the fundamental thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/the-mechanics-of-putting-one-spot-of-color-next-to-another-that-is/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) > [If you look into the past of the successful painter you will find square miles of canvas behind him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-webster-hawthorne/if-you-look-into-the-past-of-the-successful-painter-you-will-find/) [Charles Webster Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) [Explore all 37 Charles Webster Hawthorne quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-webster-hawthorne/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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 > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [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 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/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Do not let it look as if you reasoned too much. 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