--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not…" description: "\"Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not therefore become Van Gogh, and the same would go for Mozart or anyone else who contributed something that was or..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png" --- # Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not therefore become… ![“Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not therefore become Van Gogh, and the same would go for Mozart or anyone else who contributed something that was original. Certainly in the way that I described visualizing numbers in abstract, meaningful shapes.” quote by Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png) > “Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not therefore become Van Gogh, and the same would go for Mozart or anyone else who contributed something that was original. Certainly in the way that I described visualizing numbers in abstract, meaningful shapes.” [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Imitating a master does not make one the master; originality requires personal interpretation and meaning. **In simple terms:** Copying does not equal originality. Key Takeaway Cultivate your own creative voice. Themes creativity originality identity Mood thoughtful inspirational Type creative philosophical When to use this quote - art workshops - music composition - design thinking Key Concepts artistic expression cognitive modeling Questions to Reflect On - How can you transform influence into originality? - What practices nurture authentic expression? A Different Perspective Some argue imitation is a learning step. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/) [Anyone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anyone/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Become](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/become/) [Certainly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainly/) [Copies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copies/) [Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/does/) [Else](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/else/) [Go](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/go/) [Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gogh/) [Gogh Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gogh-does-5220772/) [Gogh Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gogh-mozart-4672312/) [Meaningful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaningful/) [Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mozart/) [Mozart Contributed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mozart-contributed-5220773/) [Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers/) [Original](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/original/) [Same](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/same/) [Shapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes/) [Someone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/someone/) [Something](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/something/) [Therefore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/therefore/) [Van](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/van/) [Van gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/van-gogh/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) ## Related quotes > [Van Gogh was impulsive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/van-gogh-was-impulsive/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [So, okay, I'm not a genius. Vincent Van Gogh and Albert Einstein were geniuses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/so-okay-i-m-not-a-genius-vincent-van-gogh-and-albert-einstein-were/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [There are plenty of millionaires who would pay millions to hang a Van Gogh painting on the wall, but hardly one that would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-sivers/there-are-plenty-of-millionaires-who-would-pay-millions-to-hang-a-van/) [Derek Sivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-sivers/) > [I felt like it was inevitable that I was going to fail in life and die young. So I was frantically scrambling to document…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-o/i-felt-like-it-was-inevitable-that-i-was-going-to-fail-in-life-and/) [Steve-O](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-o/) > [I've always been really fascinated by Vincent van Gogh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-hall/i-ve-always-been-really-fascinated-by-vincent-van-gogh/) [Michael C. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-hall/) > [We shot that in all the real places where Van Gogh worked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincente-minnelli/we-shot-that-in-all-the-real-places-where-van-gogh-worked/) [Vincente Minnelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincente-minnelli/) > [My wife is the expert, but I like art particularly. I like Van Gogh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudio-ranieri/my-wife-is-the-expert-but-i-like-art-particularly-i-like-van-gogh/) [Claudio Ranieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudio-ranieri/) > [I can't cut off an ear everyday. Do the Van Gogh here and the Mozart there. Anyway it's exhausting enough always having to check…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-kippenberger/i-can-t-cut-off-an-ear-everyday-do-the-van-gogh-here-and-the-mozart/) [Martin Kippenberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-kippenberger/) > [The artist cannot look to others to validate his efforts or his calling. If you don't believe me, ask Van Gogh, who produced masterpiece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/the-artist-cannot-look-to-others-to-validate-his-efforts-or-his/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [“You have first to experience what you want to express. —Vincent van Gogh”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-kawasaki/you-have-first-to-experience-what-you-want-to-express-vincent-van-gogh/) [Guy Kawasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-kawasaki/) > [“I’m not Helen Keller—I’m Van Gogh. It’s not that I can’t hear, it’s that I don’t use my ears.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-m-not-helen-keller-i-m-van-gogh-it-s-not-that-i-can-t-hear-it-s/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Now don't think I've lost my mind - but I'll tell you, I'll look at some of the cards I have, some of Van…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-day/now-don-t-think-i-ve-lost-my-mind-but-i-ll-tell-you-i-ll-look-at-some/) [Dorothy Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-day/) > [ You cannot be the good all the time — sometimes it is necessary to get angry. \[Vincent Van Gogh\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-stone/you-cannot-be-the-good-all-the-time-sometimes-it-is-necessary-to-get/) [Irving Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-stone/) > [“Van Gogh on Christmas: And now we’re slowly heading towards winter, and many dread it, but Christmas is wonderful, it’s like the moss on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liesbeth-heenk/van-gogh-on-christmas-and-now-we-re-slowly-heading-towards-winter-and/) [Liesbeth Heenk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liesbeth-heenk/) > [“No wonder Van Gogh cut his ear off, I thought; there’s nothing else to do in a place like this but cut your ear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kerr/no-wonder-van-gogh-cut-his-ear-off-i-thought-there-s-nothing-else-to/) [Philip Kerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kerr/) ## More by Daniel Tammet > [It was hard for me to find my voice because I was, for so long, absorbed in my own world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/it-was-hard-for-me-to-find-my-voice-because-i-was-for-so-long/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [When things don't come so naturally to you, you want to persevere, you want to keep pushing yourself to overcome obstacles that prevent you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/when-things-don-t-come-so-naturally-to-you-you-want-to-persevere-you/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [Aesthetic judgments, rather than abstract reasoning, guide and shape the process by which we all come to know what we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/aesthetic-judgments-rather-than-abstract-reasoning-guide-and-shape/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I'm very comfortable with the idea of there being late bloomers, and for me, of course, there's no difficulty at all in the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-m-very-comfortable-with-the-idea-of-there-being-late-bloomers-and/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [Growing up, I would have to watch the other children and learn from my mistakes. I would have to push myself to overcome the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/growing-up-i-would-have-to-watch-the-other-children-and-learn-from-my/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I love music. I have a fondness for Chopin, and I very much like his 'Raindrop Prelude.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-love-music-i-have-a-fondness-for-chopin-and-i-very-much-like-his/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [My algebra was relatively poor. I found it very difficult to use equations that substituted numbers - to which I had a synesthetic and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/my-algebra-was-relatively-poor-i-found-it-very-difficult-to-use/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I've got a quiet voice. I think it's because as a child I didn't speak very much. I used to put my fingers in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-ve-got-a-quiet-voice-i-think-it-s-because-as-a-child-i-didn-t-speak/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I feel traveling certainly does broaden the mind. In my case certainly I feel more confident. It gives you a new perspective on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-feel-traveling-certainly-does-broaden-the-mind-in-my-case-certainly/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [We know next to nothing with any certainty about Pythagoras, except that he was not really called Pythagoras. The name by which he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/we-know-next-to-nothing-with-any-certainty-about-pythagoras-except/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [Aesthetics - rather than reason - shapes our thought processes. First comes aesthetics, then logic. 'Thinking in Numbers' is not about an attempt to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/aesthetics-rather-than-reason-shapes-our-thought-processes-first/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [There are always things I find difficult - being in crowds, remembering faces. I do like routines. I always travel with someone. My life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/there-are-always-things-i-find-difficult-being-in-crowds-remembering/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [One particular aspect of Siddhartha’s revelation of the outside world has always struck me. Quite possibly he lived his first thirty years without any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/one-particular-aspect-of-siddhartha-s-revelation-of-the-outside-world/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I love books so much. I've read more books than anyone else I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-love-books-so-much-i-ve-read-more-books-than-anyone-else-i-know/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [I recited Pi to 22,514 decimal points in five hours and nine minutes. I was able to do this because of weeks of study,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/i-recited-pi-to-22-514-decimal-points-in-five-hours-and-nine-minutes/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) [Explore all 82 Daniel Tammet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) ## 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": "Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not therefore become Van Gogh, and the same would go for Mozart or anyone else who contributed something that was original. Certainly in the way that I described visualizing numbers in abstract, meaningful shapes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel Tammet" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-therefore-become-van-gogh-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abstract" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-therefore-become-van-gogh-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/500/daniel-tammet-8321_abstract_someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-t_1451372.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Someone who copies a Van Gogh does not therefore become Van Gogh, and the same would go for Mozart or anyone…” — Daniel Tammet", "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": "Daniel Tammet", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Someone who copies a Van Gogh...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-therefore-become-van-gogh-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/someone-who-copies-a-van-gogh-does-not-therefore-become-van-gogh-and/#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 } } ] } ```