--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's to paint directly on the canvas…" description: "\"It's to paint directly on the canvas without any funny business, as it were, and I use almost pure turpentine to start with, adding oil as I go along u..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/edward-hopper-15293_artist_it-s-to-paint-directly-on-the-canvas-wit_3212279.jpg" --- # It's to paint directly on the canvas without any funny… ![“It's to paint directly on the canvas without any funny business, as it were, and I use almost pure turpentine to start with, adding oil as I go along until the medium becomes pure oil. I use as little oil as I can possibly help, and that's my method.” quote by Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/edward-hopper-15293_artist_it-s-to-paint-directly-on-the-canvas-wit_3212279.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/edward-hopper-15293_artist_it-s-to-paint-directly-on-the-canvas-wit_3212279.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/edward-hopper-15293_artist_it-s-to-paint-directly-on-the-canvas-wit_3212279.jpg) > “It's to paint directly on the canvas without any funny business, as it were, and I use almost pure turpentine to start with, adding oil as I go along until the medium becomes pure oil. I use as little oil as I can possibly help, and that's my method.” [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hopper describes his painting technique of using minimal oil and turpentine to achieve a pure medium. **In simple terms:** He paints with little oil, starting with turpentine and adding oil sparingly. Key Takeaway Use minimal medium for purity. Themes artistic technique material purity painting process Mood reflective analytical Type instructional technical When to use this quote - studio painting - art education - conservation of materials Key Concepts minimalism medium control artist workflow Questions to Reflect On - How does medium choice affect visual impact? - What are the risks of using too little oil? A Different Perspective Too little oil can cause cracking or limited blending. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adding Oil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adding-oil-6005867/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Canvas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/canvas/) [Directly Canvas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directly-canvas-6005866/) [Funny business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny-business/) [Helping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Mediums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediums/) [Method](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/method/) [Oil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oil/) [Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint/) [Paint Directly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint-directly-757134/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Pure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pure/) [Turpentine Start](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turpentine-start-6005868/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) ## Related quotes > [I trust Winsor and Newton and I paint directly upon it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-trust-winsor-and-newton-and-i-paint-directly-upon-it/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [I really enjoy squeezing out a big lump of paint directly onto the canvas and leaving it; fresh, immediate and sometimes shocking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer/i-really-enjoy-squeezing-out-a-big-lump-of-paint-directly-onto-the/) [John Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer/) > [I paint very directly. I go from top to bottom. When I get to the floor, the painting is finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-welliver/i-paint-very-directly-i-go-from-top-to-bottom-when-i-get-to-the-floor/) [Neil Welliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-welliver/) > [I apply paint directly from the tube and with my fingers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer/i-apply-paint-directly-from-the-tube-and-with-my-fingers/) [John Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer/) > [Those proud of keeping an orderly desk never know the thrill of finding something that they thought irretrievably lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-exley/those-proud-of-keeping-an-orderly-desk-never-know-the-thrill-of-2/) [Helen Exley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-exley/) > [Money can't buy friends, but you can get a better class of enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spike-milligan/money-can-t-buy-friends-but-you-can-get-a-better-class-of-enemy/) [Spike Milligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spike-milligan/) > [Get the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-c-collins/get-the-right-people-on-the-bus-the-wrong-people-off-the-bus-and-the/) [James C. Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-c-collins/) > [Doing actual comedic material is just about the most joyful endeavor ever. That's the truth. The only time it's not funny is when business…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-louis-dreyfus/doing-actual-comedic-material-is-just-about-the-most-joyful-endeavor/) [Julia Louis-Dreyfus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-louis-dreyfus/) > [Writing is a funny business. You sit in your room and listen to voices and write everything down. What kind of a profession is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kittredge/writing-is-a-funny-business-you-sit-in-your-room-and-listen-to-voices/) [William Kittredge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kittredge/) > [There's an enormous number of managers who have retired on the job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/there-s-an-enormous-number-of-managers-who-have-retired-on-the-job/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [It was all very strange, Mr. Gray thought, as he wiped the coffee canister clean with a sponge. Very, very mysterious. You were born;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-was-all-very-strange-mr-gray-thought-as-he-wiped-the-coffee/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [It is unfortunate we can't buy many business executives for what they are worth and sell them for what they think they are worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/it-is-unfortunate-we-can-t-buy-many-business-executives-for-what-they/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [There's no business like show business, but there are several businesses like accounting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/there-s-no-business-like-show-business-but-there-are-several/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [The higher a monkey climbs, the more you see of its behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stilwell/the-higher-a-monkey-climbs-the-more-you-see-of-its-behind/) [Joseph Stilwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stilwell/) > [The tragedy is that Dell didn't win it - we lost it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-tragedy-is-that-dell-didn-t-win-it-we-lost-it/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) ## More by Edward Hopper > [I find in working always the disturbing intrusion of elements not a part of my most interested vision, and the inevitable obliteration and replacement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-find-in-working-always-the-disturbing-intrusion-of-elements-not-a/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [I find linseed oil and white lead the most satisfactory mediums.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-find-linseed-oil-and-white-lead-the-most-satisfactory-mediums/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [There is a sort of elation about sunlight on the upper part of a house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/there-is-a-sort-of-elation-about-sunlight-on-the-upper-part-of-a-house/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [No amount of skillful invention can replace the essential element of imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/no-amount-of-skillful-invention-can-replace-the-essential-element-of/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [My aim in painting has always been the most exact transcription possible of my most intimate impression of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/my-aim-in-painting-has-always-been-the-most-exact-transcription/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [The only quality that endures in art is a personal vision of the world. Methods are transient: personality is enduring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/the-only-quality-that-endures-in-art-is-a-personal-vision-of-the/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [Yes, linseed oil. I used to use poppy oil, but I have heard that poppy oil is given to cracking pigment too, so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/yes-linseed-oil-i-used-to-use-poppy-oil-but-i-have-heard-that-poppy/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [I use a retouching varnish which is made in France, Libert, and that's all the varnish I use.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-use-a-retouching-varnish-which-is-made-in-france-libert-and-that-s/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [The trend in some of the contemporary movements in art, but by no means all, seems to deny this ideal and to me appears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/the-trend-in-some-of-the-contemporary-movements-in-art-but-by-no/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [The only real influence I've ever had was myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/the-only-real-influence-i-ve-ever-had-was-myself/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [If I had the energy, I would have done it all over the county.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/if-i-had-the-energy-i-would-have-done-it-all-over-the-county/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [The question of the value of nationality in art is perhaps unsolvable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/the-question-of-the-value-of-nationality-in-art-is-perhaps-unsolvable/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [If you could say it in words there would be no reason to paint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/if-you-could-say-it-in-words-there-would-be-no-reason-to-paint/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [I think that zinc white has a property of scaling and cracking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-think-that-zinc-white-has-a-property-of-scaling-and-cracking/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [In its most limited sense, modern, art would seem to concern itself only with the technical innovations of the period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/in-its-most-limited-sense-modern-art-would-seem-to-concern-itself/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) [Explore all 43 Edward Hopper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [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 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/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's to paint directly on the canvas without any funny business, as it were, and I use almost pure turpentine to start with, adding oil as I go along until the medium becomes pure oil. 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