---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I did all the stuff that people do…"
description: "\"I did all the stuff that people do - film, performance, photography, pictures and words, words and pictures. In retrospect, I was trying to find some w..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg"
---

#  I did all the stuff that people do - film, performance…

![“I did all the stuff that people do - film, performance, photography, pictures and words, words and pictures. In retrospect, I was trying to find some way to put things - meaning images and forms - together that highlighted some idea of what was underneath the surface of an image, what determined…” quote by David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg)

> “I did all the stuff that people do - film, performance, photography, pictures and words, words and pictures. In retrospect, I was trying to find some way to put things - meaning images and forms - together that highlighted some idea of what was underneath the surface of an image, what determined how something was seen.”

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He explored combining media to reveal hidden meanings behind visual perception.

**In simple terms:** He mixed media to show what lies beneath images.

Key Takeaway

Use multiple forms to uncover deeper truths.

Themes

art perception media meaning creativity

Mood

contemplative inquisitive

Type

analytical inspirational

When to use this quote

- gallery exhibitions
- creative workshops
- multimedia projects
- educational curricula

Key Concepts

interdisciplinary art visual theory semiotics

Questions to Reflect On

- What hidden layers do you seek in visual work?
- How can mixed media clarify perception?

A Different Perspective

May dilute focus if not cohesively integrated.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Determined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determined/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Performances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performances/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Pictures and words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pictures-and-words/) [Retrospect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retrospect/)

## Related quotes

> [This is the power of images, the ambiguity. You are never completely sure of anything. With written language, it's more concrete. You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-serra/this-is-the-power-of-images-the-ambiguity-you-are-never-completely/)

[Albert Serra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-serra/)

> [If I were to have an epitaph, I'd want it to read, 'She did stuff.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ory-okolloh/if-i-were-to-have-an-epitaph-i-d-want-it-to-read-she-did-stuff/)

[Ory Okolloh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ory-okolloh/)

> [I haven't done Vine in a long time, and when I first started, I just did stuff that I thought was funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maisie-williams/i-haven-t-done-vine-in-a-long-time-and-when-i-first-started-i-just/)

[Maisie Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maisie-williams/)

> [I don't know if you saw the parting of the Red Sea with the chariots on the horses, I did stuff like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-farnsworth/i-don-t-know-if-you-saw-the-parting-of-the-red-sea-with-the-chariots/)

[Richard Farnsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-farnsworth/)

> [I remember that one time, before Facebook, when I went outside and did stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-remember-that-one-time-before-facebook-when-i-went-outside-and-did/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I had to learn American sign language. And I did stuff in it, stuff that was just for me and was fun, that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-had-to-learn-american-sign-language-and-i-did-stuff-in-it-stuff/)

[Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/)

> [What excites me about picture books is the gap between pictures and words. Sometimes the pictures can tell a slightly different story or tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-browne/what-excites-me-about-picture-books-is-the-gap-between-pictures-and/)

[Anthony Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-browne/)

> [I like to look at the interface between words and pictures and wonder about which comes first, a sort of chicken-or-egg type of question.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-like-to-look-at-the-interface-between-words-and-pictures-and-wonder/)

[Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/)

> [I hope for quick, fluent copy and memorable pictures. The words would not 'describe' the pictures; the pictures would not 'illustrate' the words. Together,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-rukeyser/i-hope-for-quick-fluent-copy-and-memorable-pictures-the-words-would/)

[Muriel Rukeyser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-rukeyser/)

> [Words also are filters. They have to be translated. Even in the original language, there is interpretation and some ambiguity. If there's a cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/words-also-are-filters-they-have-to-be-translated-even-in-the/)

[Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/)

> [Still photographs are the most powerful weapons in the world. Words and pictures have a continuing struggle for primacy. In my mind, a person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-adams/still-photographs-are-the-most-powerful-weapons-in-the-world-words/)

[Eddie Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-adams/)

> [I love picture books - with picture books, you can use words and pictures as a double act, even tell two different versions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mini-grey/i-love-picture-books-with-picture-books-you-can-use-words-and/)

[Mini Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mini-grey/)

> [Words are but pictures of our thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/words-are-but-pictures-of-our-thoughts/)

[John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/)

> [Words and pictures can work together to communicate more powerfully than either alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-albert-allard/words-and-pictures-can-work-together-to-communicate-more-powerfully/)

[William Albert Allard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-albert-allard/)

> [“I don’t know who said a picture is worth a thousand words, but whoever said it is wrong. Words and pictures should not, cannot,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-brandt/i-don-t-know-who-said-a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-words-but-whoever/)

Anne Brandt

## More by David Salle

> [What most paintings do is give you a path for your eye to move around. The painting actually tells your eye, go here, now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/what-most-paintings-do-is-give-you-a-path-for-your-eye-to-move-around/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [I've always read, I've always admired writers and was lucky really to meet some extraordinary ones and become friends. Certain times you just like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-ve-always-read-i-ve-always-admired-writers-and-was-lucky-really-to/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [Truth is, I didn't know what the hell I was doing when I got out of Cal Arts. I think I wasted a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/truth-is-i-didn-t-know-what-the-hell-i-was-doing-when-i-got-out-of/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [I feel that the only thing that really matters in art and life is to go against the tidal wave of literalism and literal-mindedness-to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-feel-that-the-only-thing-that-really-matters-in-art-and-life-is-to/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [Since I moved six or seven times the first year I was in New York, I had to be able to roll up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/since-i-moved-six-or-seven-times-the-first-year-i-was-in-new-york-i/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [People are still making paintings. People are still enjoying paintings, looking at paintings. Paintings still have something to tell us. There's a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/people-are-still-making-paintings-people-are-still-enjoying-paintings/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [I feel like all the American artists are aesthetically not very interesting and mired in a complaining relationship to its own culture, whereas the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-feel-like-all-the-american-artists-are-aesthetically-not-very/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [I think people have to be given - or take - the permission to say that something is nothing. Just because it's in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-think-people-have-to-be-given-or-take-the-permission-to-say-that/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [There are so many different ways to talk and think about art. We just spoke about when attitude becomes form. But when I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/there-are-so-many-different-ways-to-talk-and-think-about-art-we-just/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [I started when I was nine. Really, everything I know about color theory, composition, drawing, and painting, I learned when I was a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-started-when-i-was-nine-really-everything-i-know-about-color-theory/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [If you go to a concert, you will notice, is it loud? Is the music fast? Is it predominately strings or brass? There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/if-you-go-to-a-concert-you-will-notice-is-it-loud-is-the-music-fast/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [I was actually dumbfounded by how some artists talked to each other. For example, it was a normal night at a bar, nothing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-was-actually-dumbfounded-by-how-some-artists-talked-to-each-other/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [What if everything in a museum is crap? It's entirely possible; it's not the end of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/what-if-everything-in-a-museum-is-crap-it-s-entirely-possible-it-s/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [“good art illustrates anything at all, it’s likely to be a story you didn’t even know needed telling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/good-art-illustrates-anything-at-all-it-s-likely-to-be-a-story-you/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

> [“How a painter treats this edge is the real subject of realist painting; how the brush behaves in the vicinity of an edge gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/how-a-painter-treats-this-edge-is-the-real-subject-of-realist/)

[David Salle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

[Explore all 61 David Salle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/)

## More Determined quotes

> [Human beings have an innate inner drive to be autonomous, self-determined, and connected to one another. And when that drive is liberated, people achieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-h-pink/human-beings-have-an-innate-inner-drive-to-be-autonomous-self/)

[Daniel H. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-h-pink/)

> [If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-not-willing-to-learn-no-one-can-help-you-if-you-are/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Ignorance is not bliss — it is oblivion. Determined ignorance is the hastiest kind of oblivion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-wylie/ignorance-is-not-bliss-it-is-oblivion-determined-ignorance-is-the/)

[Philip Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-wylie/)

> [I was determined to be an actor and make a name in the industry, and hence, I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nawazuddin-siddiqui/i-was-determined-to-be-an-actor-and-make-a-name-in-the-industry-and/)

[Nawazuddin Siddiqui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nawazuddin-siddiqui/)

> [Always remember, there is more strength in you than you ever realized or even imagined. Certainly nothing can keep you down if you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/always-remember-there-is-more-strength-in-you-than-you-ever-realized/)

[Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/)

> [If a Coach is determined to stay in the coaching profession, he will develop from year to year. This much is true, no coach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolph-rupp/if-a-coach-is-determined-to-stay-in-the-coaching-profession-he-will/)

[Adolph Rupp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolph-rupp/)

> [Early experience shapes the structure and function of the brain. This reveals the fundamental way in which gene expression is determined by experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-siegel/early-experience-shapes-the-structure-and-function-of-the-brain-this/)

[Daniel J. Siegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-siegel/)

> [The laws of thermodynamics, as empirically determined, express the approximate and probable behavior of systems of a great number of particles, or, more precisely,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-willard-gibbs/the-laws-of-thermodynamics-as-empirically-determined-express-the/)

J. Willard Gibbs

> [The more we sense...our ultimate potential, the more determined we become to achieve it. It's the difference between your mother hounding you to practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-l-dew/the-more-we-sense-our-ultimate-potential-the-more-determined-we/)

[Sheri L. Dew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-l-dew/)

> [How could a readiness for war in time of peace be safely prohibited, unless we could prohibit, in like manner, the preparations and establishments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/how-could-a-readiness-for-war-in-time-of-peace-be-safely-prohibited/)

[James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/)

> [Further conceive, I beg, that a stone, while continuing in motion, should be capable of thinking and knowing, that it is endeavoring, as far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/further-conceive-i-beg-that-a-stone-while-continuing-in-motion-should/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Your success will be determined by the quality of your relationships with people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/your-success-will-be-determined-by-the-quality-of-your-relationships/)

[Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/)

> [I've always been competitive and determined. It's part of my personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-simmonds/i-ve-always-been-competitive-and-determined-it-s-part-of-my/)

[Ellie Simmonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-simmonds/)

> [We are determined that before the sun sets on this terrible struggle, Our Flag will be recognized throughout the World as a symbol of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-marshall/we-are-determined-that-before-the-sun-sets-on-this-terrible-struggle/)

[George C. Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-marshall/)

> [I am still determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-washington/i-am-still-determined-to-be-cheerful-and-happy-in-whatever-situation/)

[Martha Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-washington/)

[Browse all 2,245 Determined quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determined/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I did all the stuff that people do - film, performance, photography, pictures and words, words and pictures. In retrospect, I was trying to find some way to put things - meaning images and forms - together that highlighted some idea of what was underneath the surface of an image, what determined how something was seen.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "David Salle"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film-performance-photography/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Determined"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film-performance-photography/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/david-salle-11131_determined_i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film_1108041.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I did all the stuff that people do - film, performance, photography, pictures and words, words and pictures…” — David Salle",
                "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": "David Salle",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-salle/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I did all the stuff that...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film-performance-photography/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-salle/i-did-all-the-stuff-that-people-do-film-performance-photography/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
