--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't always reach the image in my…" description: "\"I can't always reach the image in my mind... almost never, in fact... so that the abstract image I create is not quite there, but it gets to the point ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg" --- # I can't always reach the image in my mind... almost never… ![“I can't always reach the image in my mind... almost never, in fact... so that the abstract image I create is not quite there, but it gets to the point where I can leave it.” quote by Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg) > “I can't always reach the image in my mind... almost never, in fact... so that the abstract image I create is not quite there, but it gets to the point where I can leave it.” [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The artist struggles to fully realize mental images, often ending with an incomplete but sufficient result. **In simple terms:** Hard to fully capture mental images; settle for near completion. Key Takeaway Accept imperfection and move forward. Themes creativity art perfectionism Mood reflective determined Type artistic process When to use this quote - painting - design - concept development - creative brainstorming Key Concepts visualization mental imagery artistic process Questions to Reflect On - How do you decide when an image is “good enough”? - What compromises affect artistic vision? A Different Perspective Even incomplete images can convey meaning, but may limit impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/) [Abstract Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract-image-2276887/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Image Create](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/image-create-4032242/) [Image Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/image-mind-845592/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Photographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographer/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Reach Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reach-image-4032241/) ## Related quotes > [“Art lovers collect paintings that demonstrate some form of imperceptible complexity. Abstract images with vague messages and symbols that keep you guessing and wondering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-fordham/art-lovers-collect-paintings-that-demonstrate-some-form-of/) [Mindy Fordham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-fordham/) > [I have spent too much time with my eye glued to the viewfinder and ended up missing both the image of the mind and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-peacock/i-have-spent-too-much-time-with-my-eye-glued-to-the-viewfinder-and/) [Doug Peacock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-peacock/) > [I'd like to get back and win the World Series and have that be the last image in my mind for the postseason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-lidge/i-d-like-to-get-back-and-win-the-world-series-and-have-that-be-the/) [Brad Lidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-lidge/) > [“Form an image in your mind of what you want to happen, then do what it takes to make it happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lana-krumwiede/form-an-image-in-your-mind-of-what-you-want-to-happen-then-do-what-it/) [Lana Krumwiede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lana-krumwiede/) > [“A person is nothing but his image. Philosophers can tell us that it doesn't matter what the world thinks of us, that nothing matters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/a-person-is-nothing-but-his-image-philosophers-can-tell-us-that-it/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“I kept an image of you in my mind through all of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-hannah/i-kept-an-image-of-you-in-my-mind-through-all-of-it/) [Kristin Hannah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-hannah/) > [The weight of your body is controlled by the image in your mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/the-weight-of-your-body-is-controlled-by-the-image-in-your-mind/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [You will never rise above the image you have of yourself in your own mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/you-will-never-rise-above-the-image-you-have-of-yourself-in-your-own/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [My photographs are not planned or composed in advance, and I do not anticipate that the onlooker will share my viewpoint. However, I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frank/my-photographs-are-not-planned-or-composed-in-advance-and-i-do-not/) [Robert Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frank/) > [“You act, and feel, not according to what things are really like, but according to the image your mind holds of what they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/you-act-and-feel-not-according-to-what-things-are-really-like-but/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [If you want to establish a clear image in the minds of consumers, you first need a clear image in your own mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-zyman/if-you-want-to-establish-a-clear-image-in-the-minds-of-consumers-you/) [Sergio Zyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-zyman/) > [The pop artists did images that anybody walking down Broadway could recognize in a split second — comics, picnic tables, men’s trousers, celebrities, shower…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/the-pop-artists-did-images-that-anybody-walking-down-broadway-could/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) > [All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/all-the-best-ideas-come-out-of-the-process-they-come-out-of-the-work/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [If it looks like art, chances are it's somebody else's art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/if-it-looks-like-art-chances-are-it-s-somebody-else-s-art/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Chuck Close > [While photography is the easiest medium in which to be competent, it is the hardest in which to develop an idiosyncratic personal vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/while-photography-is-the-easiest-medium-in-which-to-be-competent-it/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Never let anyone define what you are capable of by using parameters that don’t apply to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/never-let-anyone-define-what-you-are-capable-of-by-using-parameters/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Inspiration is highly overrated. If you sit around and wait for the clouds to part, it's not liable to ever happen. More often than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/inspiration-is-highly-overrated-if-you-sit-around-and-wait-for-the/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [There's something Zen-like about the way I work - it's like raking gravel in a Zen Buddhist garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/there-s-something-zen-like-about-the-way-i-work-it-s-like-raking/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [After a few days in hospital, I was thinking, Oh, gee - I raised in a church, Protestant upbringing which I'd rejected as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/after-a-few-days-in-hospital-i-was-thinking-oh-gee-i-raised-in-a/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Painting is the most magical of mediums. The transcendence is truly amazing to me every time I go to a museum and I see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/painting-is-the-most-magical-of-mediums-the-transcendence-is-truly/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Every child should have a chance to feel special.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/every-child-should-have-a-chance-to-feel-special/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [It's always a pleasure to talk about someone else's work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/it-s-always-a-pleasure-to-talk-about-someone-else-s-work/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [I absolutely hate technology, and I'm computer illiterate, and I never use any labor-saving devices although I'm not convinced that a computer is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-absolutely-hate-technology-and-i-m-computer-illiterate-and-i-never/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [In the 7th grade, I made a 20-foot long mural of the Lewis and Clark Trail while we were studying that in history because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/in-the-7th-grade-i-made-a-20-foot-long-mural-of-the-lewis-and-clark/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Ease is the enemy of the artist. When things get too easy, you're in trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/ease-is-the-enemy-of-the-artist-when-things-get-too-easy-you-re-in/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [I'm very learning-disabled, and I think it drove me to what I'm doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-m-very-learning-disabled-and-i-think-it-drove-me-to-what-i-m-doing/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [If it looks like art, chances are it's somebody else's art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/if-it-looks-like-art-chances-are-it-s-somebody-else-s-art/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [Paintings can make you cry and it's just \*\*colored dirt\*\*.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/paintings-can-make-you-cry-and-it-s-just-colored-dirt/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [You don't have to reinvent the wheel every day. Today you will do what you did yesterday, and tomorrow you will do what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/you-don-t-have-to-reinvent-the-wheel-every-day-today-you-will-do-what/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) [Explore all 106 Chuck Close quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) ## More Abstract quotes > [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Wisdom is the abstract of the past, but beauty is the promise of the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wisdom-is-the-abstract-of-the-past-but-beauty-is-the-promise-of-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Where human eyes have never seen, where human beings have never been, I build a world of abstract dreams, and I wait for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-ra/where-human-eyes-have-never-seen-where-human-beings-have-never-been-i/) [Sun Ra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-ra/) > [A little too abstract, a little too wise, It is time for us to kiss the earth again, It is time to let the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/a-little-too-abstract-a-little-too-wise-it-is-time-for-us-to-kiss-the/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [“Happy is very abstract, you can't touch it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-veal/happy-is-very-abstract-you-can-t-touch-it/) [Julius Veal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-veal/) > [Abstract Expressionism was invented by New York drunks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/abstract-expressionism-was-invented-by-new-york-drunks/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [The more horrible this world (as today, for instance), the more abstract our art, whereas a happy world brings forth an art of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-more-horrible-this-world-as-today-for-instance-the-more-abstract/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) > [Describing comic sensibility is near impossible. It's sort of an abstract silliness, that sometimes the joke isn't the star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-carvey/describing-comic-sensibility-is-near-impossible-it-s-sort-of-an/) [Dana Carvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-carvey/) > [For people of color - especially African Americans - the idea that racist cops might frame members of their community is no abstract notion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/for-people-of-color-especially-african-americans-the-idea-that-racist/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [The word of the Lord never comes to us as an opinion, no attempt is made to support it by argument, it comes as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-w-ivins/the-word-of-the-lord-never-comes-to-us-as-an-opinion-no-attempt-is/) [Anthony W. Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-w-ivins/) > [A mobile is an abstract sculpture made chiefly out of sheet metal, steel rods, wire and wood. Some or all of these elements move,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-calder/a-mobile-is-an-abstract-sculpture-made-chiefly-out-of-sheet-metal/) [Alexander Calder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-calder/) > [I'm this superphilosophical kind of person. Stuck in a prison of abstract ideas and overpowering emotions, I have this personality that makes it really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsuo-kirino/i-m-this-superphilosophical-kind-of-person-stuck-in-a-prison-of/) [Natsuo Kirino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsuo-kirino/) > [Future lawyers should be more aware that law is not a system of abstract logic, but the web of arrangements, rooted in history but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-frankfurter/future-lawyers-should-be-more-aware-that-law-is-not-a-system-of/) [Felix Frankfurter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-frankfurter/) > [The trouble is that when you read criticisms about the other films that I've made you get the impression that they're all about themes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-haneke/the-trouble-is-that-when-you-read-criticisms-about-the-other-films/) [Michael Haneke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-haneke/) > [Painting is... a richer language than words... Painting operates through signs which are not abstract and incorporeal like words. The signs of painting are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-dubuffet/painting-is-a-richer-language-than-words-painting-operates-through/) [Jean Dubuffet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-dubuffet/) [Browse all 1,403 Abstract quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I can't always reach the image in my mind... almost never, in fact... so that the abstract image I create is not quite there, but it gets to the point where I can leave it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Chuck Close" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-mind-almost-never-in-fact-so/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abstract" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-mind-almost-never-in-fact-so/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/chuck-close-4781_abstract_i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-min_1264698.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I can't always reach the image in my mind... almost never, in fact... so that the abstract image I create is…” — Chuck Close", "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": "Chuck Close", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I can't always reach the image...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-mind-almost-never-in-fact-so/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-can-t-always-reach-the-image-in-my-mind-almost-never-in-fact-so/#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 } } ] } ```