--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Only those who commit to following their…" description: "\"“Only those who commit to following their own artistic path can look back and see this issue in clear perspective: the real question about acceptance i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77b/david-bayles-13995_acceptance_only-those-who-commit-to-following-their_2319219.jpg" --- # Only those who commit to following their own artistic path… ![“Only those who commit to following their own artistic path can look back and see this issue in clear perspective: the real question about acceptance is not whether your work will be viewed as art, but whether it will be viewed as your art. APPROVAL” quote by David Bayles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77b/david-bayles-13995_acceptance_only-those-who-commit-to-following-their_2319219.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77b/david-bayles-13995_acceptance_only-those-who-commit-to-following-their_2319219.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77b/david-bayles-13995_acceptance_only-those-who-commit-to-following-their_2319219.jpg) > ““Only those who commit to following their own artistic path can look back and see this issue in clear perspective: the real question about acceptance is not whether your work will be viewed as art, but whether it will be viewed as your art. APPROVAL”” [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. True artistic authenticity matters more than external validation; acceptance hinges on seeing work as personally yours. **In simple terms:** Your art must be yours, not just art. Key Takeaway Create for yourself, not for approval. Themes authenticity art acceptance Mood reflective determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - exhibitions - portfolio reviews - social media posting - artist statements Key Concepts self‑identity creative integrity Questions to Reflect On - Do you create to impress or to express? - How does personal ownership affect your confidence? A Different Perspective External praise can still sway confidence despite personal conviction. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acceptance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptance/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ## Related quotes > [Works of art are viewed by people. They are heard by people. They are felt by people. They are not just the fodder of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-ron-hubbard/works-of-art-are-viewed-by-people-they-are-heard-by-people-they-are/) [L. Ron Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-ron-hubbard/) > [The history of art is not just the history of artists; it is also the history of the people who viewed art. And that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/the-history-of-art-is-not-just-the-history-of-artists-it-is-also-the/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [I visited the Museum of Modern Art and viewed the exhibition of Picasso's sculptures, and I couldn't help but think about what it would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pinkney/i-visited-the-museum-of-modern-art-and-viewed-the-exhibition-of/) [Jerry Pinkney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pinkney/) > [Picasso obviously viewed his art as a business, which it was. I view my business as an art, which it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/picasso-obviously-viewed-his-art-as-a-business-which-it-was-i-view-my/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“Love first; ask questions later.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-courtney/love-first-ask-questions-later/) [Jeremy Courtney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-courtney/) > [Let us learn to accept and appreciate things now, and we'll find more happiness in every moment we live. Happiness comes when we stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/let-us-learn-to-accept-and-appreciate-things-now-and-we-ll-find-more/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [Take responsibily for your past, the bad memories of poor decisions you took were your choices once, and you liked them for the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aruho-marvin/take-responsibily-for-your-past-the-bad-memories-of-poor-decisions/) [Aruho Marvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aruho-marvin/) > [“Loving someone who does not love you back hurts, alot, i know. It is liking seeing these pair of shoes at the retail store…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomthandazo-tsembeni/loving-someone-who-does-not-love-you-back-hurts-alot-i-know-it-is/) [Nomthandazo Tsembeni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomthandazo-tsembeni/) > [Acceptance of death when it arrives is one thing, but to allow it to upstage the joys of living is ingratitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-blythe/acceptance-of-death-when-it-arrives-is-one-thing-but-to-allow-it-to/) [Ronald Blythe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-blythe/) > [When one fib becomes due as it were, you must forge another to take up the old acceptance; and so the stock of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/when-one-fib-becomes-due-as-it-were-you-must-forge-another-to-take-up/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [Losing someone is easy, but accepting it is hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/losing-someone-is-easy-but-accepting-it-is-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) ## 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/) > [“But the important point here is not that you have — or don’t have — what other artists have, but rather that it doesn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bayles/but-the-important-point-here-is-not-that-you-have-or-don-t-have-what/) [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/) [Explore all 48 David Bayles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bayles/) ## More Acceptance quotes > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Losing someone is easy, but accepting it is hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/losing-someone-is-easy-but-accepting-it-is-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When one fib becomes due as it were, you must forge another to take up the old acceptance; and so the stock of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/when-one-fib-becomes-due-as-it-were-you-must-forge-another-to-take-up/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [Acceptance of death when it arrives is one thing, but to allow it to upstage the joys of living is ingratitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-blythe/acceptance-of-death-when-it-arrives-is-one-thing-but-to-allow-it-to/) [Ronald Blythe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-blythe/) > [“Loving someone who does not love you back hurts, alot, i know. It is liking seeing these pair of shoes at the retail store…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomthandazo-tsembeni/loving-someone-who-does-not-love-you-back-hurts-alot-i-know-it-is/) [Nomthandazo Tsembeni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomthandazo-tsembeni/) > [Take responsibily for your past, the bad memories of poor decisions you took were your choices once, and you liked them for the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aruho-marvin/take-responsibily-for-your-past-the-bad-memories-of-poor-decisions/) [Aruho Marvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aruho-marvin/) > [Let us learn to accept and appreciate things now, and we'll find more happiness in every moment we live. Happiness comes when we stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/let-us-learn-to-accept-and-appreciate-things-now-and-we-ll-find-more/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [“Love first; ask questions later.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-courtney/love-first-ask-questions-later/) [Jeremy Courtney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-courtney/) > [“There was beauty in chaos, she'd just never known it before.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-linsmeier/there-was-beauty-in-chaos-she-d-just-never-known-it-before/) [Amanda Linsmeier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-linsmeier/) > [Accepting the challenges in life makes it interesting and overcoming them makes it eloquent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/accepting-the-challenges-in-life-makes-it-interesting-and-overcoming/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Acceptance is the only thing you should teach. Be it Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Dalit, you must inculcate acceptance, not tolerance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamal-haasan/acceptance-is-the-only-thing-you-should-teach-be-it-christian-muslim/) [Kamal Haasan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamal-haasan/) > [There just seems to be more acceptance now of other kinds of British films, than the picture-postcard ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-roth/there-just-seems-to-be-more-acceptance-now-of-other-kinds-of-british/) [Tim Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-roth/) > [You should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. Everyone has something good about them. You have to find the redeeming quality and love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannette-walls/you-should-never-hate-anyone-even-your-worst-enemies-everyone-has/) [Jeannette Walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannette-walls/) > [The sense that in this universe we are treated as strangers, the longing to be acknowledged, to meet with some response, to bridge some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-sense-that-in-this-universe-we-are-treated-as-strangers-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 3,960 Acceptance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Only those who commit to following their own artistic path can look back and see this issue in clear perspective: the real question about acceptance is not whether your work will be viewed as art, but whether it will be viewed as your art. 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