--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But the important point here is not that…" description: "\"“But the important point here is not that you have — or don’t have — what other artists have, but rather that it doesn’t matter. Whatever they have is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/david-bayles-13995_art_but-the-important-point-here-is-not-that_46693.jpg" --- # But the important point here is not that you have — or… ![“But the important point here is not that you have — or don’t have — what other artists have, but rather that it doesn’t matter. Whatever they have is something needed to do their work — it wouldn’t help you in your work even if you had it. Their magic is theirs. You don’t lack it. You don’t need…” quote by David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/david-bayles-13995_art_but-the-important-point-here-is-not-that_46693.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/david-bayles-13995_art_but-the-important-point-here-is-not-that_46693.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebc/david-bayles-13995_art_but-the-important-point-here-is-not-that_46693.jpg) > ““But the important point here is not that you have — or don’t have — what other artists have, but rather that it doesn’t matter. Whatever they have is something needed to do their work — it wouldn’t help you in your work even if you had it. Their magic is theirs. You don’t lack it. You don’t need it. It has nothing to do with you. Period. EXPECTATIONS”” [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote emphasizes that artistic tools or techniques owned by others are irrelevant to your own creative process; each artist's unique approach is personal and not transferable. **In simple terms:** Your own work doesn’t depend on others’ resources. Key Takeaway Focus on your own creative path. Themes individuality creativity self-reliance artistic authenticity Mood determined reflective Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - starting a new project - overcoming creative block - comparing yourself to peers Key Concepts personal expression resource independence Practical Applications - personal artistic development - self-guided skill building Questions to Reflect On - What resources can you develop that are uniquely yours? - How does comparing yourself to others hinder your progress? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Expectations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expectations/) ## Related quotes > [Black artists attacking other Black artists doesn't move anything forward, necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cord-jefferson/black-artists-attacking-other-black-artists-doesn-t-move-anything/) [Cord Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cord-jefferson/) > [I'm not one of those artists who doesn't want to play their most popular songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-m-not-one-of-those-artists-who-doesn-t-want-to-play-their-most/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I'm one of those artists who doesn't really believe in fame. You can be a normal person these days, you don't need celebrity appeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-howard/i-m-one-of-those-artists-who-doesn-t-really-believe-in-fame-you-can/) [Ben Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-howard/) > [Usually when you put five girls together, especially when they've been solo artists, it doesn't turn out very well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-brooke/usually-when-you-put-five-girls-together-especially-when-they-ve-been/) [Ally Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-brooke/) > [In the very near future, and I stress this important point, it will no longer be war that is the continuation of politics by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/in-the-very-near-future-and-i-stress-this-important-point-it-will-no/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [The important point is to not just follow your passion but something larger than yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-important-point-is-to-not-just-follow-your-passion-but-something/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [“I have always lived in a world in which I'm just a spot in history. My life is not the important point. I'm just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-s-tepper/i-have-always-lived-in-a-world-in-which-i-m-just-a-spot-in-history-my/) [Sheri S. Tepper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-s-tepper/) > [The most important point is to accept yourself and stand on your two feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/the-most-important-point-is-to-accept-yourself-and-stand-on-your-two/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [“Whether she knew she was mine wasn't the important point in my mind. It was inevitable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meghan-march/whether-she-knew-she-was-mine-wasn-t-the-important-point-in-my-mind/) [Meghan March](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meghan-march/) > [And to understand this, I think this is a most important point where I would like always to be understood what we do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-masur/and-to-understand-this-i-think-this-is-a-most-important-point-where-i/) [Kurt Masur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-masur/) > [If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-you-have-an-important-point-to-make-don-t-try-to-be-subtle-or/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [My life is more important. At this point in my life I'm alone. I don't think about it a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nan-goldin/my-life-is-more-important-at-this-point-in-my-life-i-m-alone-i-don-t/) [Nan Goldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nan-goldin/) > [I got tired of soundchecks. At first it was important. But after a while, there was no point in me doing one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-ryder/i-got-tired-of-soundchecks-at-first-it-was-important-but-after-a/) [Shaun Ryder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-ryder/) > [It's an important point to make that people can't just be invalidated, eradicated, because they don't fit tidily into a box. And more and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-duncan/it-s-an-important-point-to-make-that-people-can-t-just-be-invalidated/) [Lindsay Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-duncan/) > [“The important point here is that you must not doubt of what you say because if you do, every single person in that room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-johnson/the-important-point-here-is-that-you-must-not-doubt-of-what-you-say/) [Rick Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-johnson/) ## More by David Bayles > [The seed of your next artwork lies embedded in the imperfections of your current piece.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/the-seed-of-your-next-artwork-lies-embedded-in-the-imperfections-of/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [The seed of your next artwork lies embedded in the imperfections of your current piece. Such imperfections are your guides - valuable, objective, non-judgmental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/the-seed-of-your-next-artwork-lies-embedded-in-the-imperfections-of-2/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“In essence, art lies embedded in the conceptual leap between pieces, not in the pieces themselves. And simply put, there’s a greater conceptual jump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/in-essence-art-lies-embedded-in-the-conceptual-leap-between-pieces/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“But while mastering technique is difficult and time-consuming, it’s still inherently easier to reach an already defined goal — a “right answer” — than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/but-while-mastering-technique-is-difficult-and-time-consuming-it-s/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“There were counter-protests, of course, and in the end Mapplethorpe’s work was exhibited, but the message to the arts community was clear: stray too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/there-were-counter-protests-of-course-and-in-the-end-mapplethorpe-s/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [Tolerance for uncertainty is the prerequisite to succeeding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/tolerance-for-uncertainty-is-the-prerequisite-to-succeeding/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [Art is a high calling - fears are coincidental. Coincidental, sneaky and disruptive, we might add, disguising themselves variously as laziness, resistance to deadlines,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/art-is-a-high-calling-fears-are-coincidental-coincidental-sneaky-and/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“Sometimes to see your work’s rightful place you have to walk to the edge of the precipice and search the deep chasms. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/sometimes-to-see-your-work-s-rightful-place-you-have-to-walk-to-the/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“Fears arise when you look back, and they arise when you look ahead. If you're prone to disaster fantasies, you may even find yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/fears-arise-when-you-look-back-and-they-arise-when-you-look-ahead-if/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“But is the Mona Lisa really art? Well then, what about an undetectably perfect copy of the Mona Lisa? That comparison (however sneaky) points…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/but-is-the-mona-lisa-really-art-well-then-what-about-an-undetectably/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [The hardest part of art-making is living your life in such a way that your work gets done-over and over-and that means, among other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/the-hardest-part-of-art-making-is-living-your-life-in-such-a-way-that/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“In making art you need to give yourself room to respond authentically, both to your subject matter and to your materials. Art happens between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/in-making-art-you-need-to-give-yourself-room-to-respond-authentically/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“Uncertainty is the essential, inevitable and all-pervasive companion to your desire to make art. And tolerance for uncertainty is the prerequisite to succeeding.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/uncertainty-is-the-essential-inevitable-and-all-pervasive-companion/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [“HENRY JAMES once proposed three questions you could productively put to an artist’s work. The first two were disarmingly straightforward: What was the artist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/henry-james-once-proposed-three-questions-you-could-productively-put/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) > [There's generally no good reason why others should care about most of any one artist's work. The function of the overwhelming majority of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/there-s-generally-no-good-reason-why-others-should-care-about-most-of/) [David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) [Explore all 48 David Bayles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) ## 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": "“But the important point here is not that you have — or don’t have — what other artists have, but rather that it doesn’t matter. 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