--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Art is not an object, but a way of…" description: "\"“Art is not an object, but a way of looking at an object.”\" — Elaine Equi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg" --- # Art is not an object, but a way of looking at an object. ![“Art is not an object, but a way of looking at an object.” quote by Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg) > ““Art is not an object, but a way of looking at an object.”” [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art is a perspective, not a static object; viewing changes its meaning **In simple terms:** Seeing art changes how we understand it Key Takeaway Shift your viewpoint to discover new meanings Themes perception art theory interpretation Mood contemplative curious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - museum visits - creative workshops - critical analysis Key Concepts aesthetic philosophy subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - How does your perspective alter an artwork? - Can you find multiple meanings in a single piece? A Different Perspective Some objects resist reinterpretation ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Object](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-object-455566/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Looking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking/) [Looking Object](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking-object-4318021/) [Object](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/object/) [Way Looking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-looking-612430/) ## Related quotes > [Could the search for ultimate truth really have revealed so hideous and visceral looking an object?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-perutz/could-the-search-for-ultimate-truth-really-have-revealed-so-hideous/) [Max Perutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-perutz/) > [Thus art is not an object, it is an experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-albers/thus-art-is-not-an-object-it-is-an-experience/) [Josef Albers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-albers/) > [It's so strange that God has had his way of looking after me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neena-gupta/it-s-so-strange-that-god-has-had-his-way-of-looking-after-me/) [Neena Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neena-gupta/) > [Poetry is a way of looking at the world for the first time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/poetry-is-a-way-of-looking-at-the-world-for-the-first-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why should the lamp or the house be an art object but not our life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/why-should-the-lamp-or-the-house-be-an-art-object-but-not-our-life/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [What strikes me is the fact that in our society, art has become something which is related only to objects and not to individuals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/what-strikes-me-is-the-fact-that-in-our-society-art-has-become-2/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [One reason I was interested in photography was to get away from the preciousness of the art object.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-sherman/one-reason-i-was-interested-in-photography-was-to-get-away-from-the/) [Cindy Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-sherman/) > [Art is not an object, but a trigger for experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-eno/art-is-not-an-object-but-a-trigger-for-experience/) [Brian Eno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-eno/) > [Painting is seen as picture making, the making of an art object, something that can stand on its own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-wright/painting-is-seen-as-picture-making-the-making-of-an-art-object/) [Peter Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-wright/) > [“A story is a really weird art object that should contain life but not be enslaved by the banality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/a-story-is-a-really-weird-art-object-that-should-contain-life-but-not/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“The work of art is the object seen sub specie aeternitatis; and the good life is the world seen sub specie aeternitatis. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/the-work-of-art-is-the-object-seen-sub-specie-aeternitatis-and-the/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) > [ Through the last few decades it \[the art object\] has been ripped off the wall and twisted through every conceivable permutation, yet back to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-bickerton/through-the-last-few-decades-it-the-art-object-has-been-ripped-off/) [Ashley Bickerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-bickerton/) > [ “The work of art is the object seen sub specie aeternitatis \[i.e., under the aspect of eternity\]; and the good life is the world… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/the-work-of-art-is-the-object-seen-sub-specie-aeternitatis-i-e-under/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) > [Each living art object, taken out of its native habitat so we can conveniently gaze at it, is like an animal in a zoo.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-boorstin/each-living-art-object-taken-out-of-its-native-habitat-so-we-can/) [Daniel J. Boorstin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-boorstin/) > [A movie star is not an artist, he is an art object.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-schickel/a-movie-star-is-not-an-artist-he-is-an-art-object/) [Richard Schickel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-schickel/) ## More by Elaine Equi > [I can appreciate the idea that with e-books more people would publish, the work would be easier to disseminate, and that it could even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-can-appreciate-the-idea-that-with-e-books-more-people-would-publish/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [I can never plan out what direction my poems will take in terms of either form or content. I wish I could but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-can-never-plan-out-what-direction-my-poems-will-take-in-terms-of/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [“Literary Lipsticks by Elaine Equi The Best American Poetry Red Wheelbarrow I Have Eaten the Plums Poppies in October Pink Christmas Red Weather A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/literary-lipsticks-by-elaine-equi-the-best-american-poetry-red/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [Sometimes you get lit students that know a lot about the canon but virtually nothing about contemporary poetry and vice versa. I like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/sometimes-you-get-lit-students-that-know-a-lot-about-the-canon-but/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [When I shut off the verbal, I like to escape into the visual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/when-i-shut-off-the-verbal-i-like-to-escape-into-the-visual/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [I like being married to another writer. You get to trade ideas. You get to talk shop. You get to complain. You get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-like-being-married-to-another-writer-you-get-to-trade-ideas-you-get/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [In the past things were either in your head (subjective, imaginary, fantasy) or else they were part of the outside world - cold, hard,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/in-the-past-things-were-either-in-your-head-subjective-imaginary/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [I've always liked language and been a big reader. I always loved books as objects. My favorite time of year as a child was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-ve-always-liked-language-and-been-a-big-reader-i-always-loved-books/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [I tend to like poems that are short as well as funny. I love Joe Brainard and Aram Saroyan. And I think their sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-tend-to-like-poems-that-are-short-as-well-as-funny-i-love-joe/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [I never liked the philosophy that you can have everything and be everything and that something is wrong if you don't want that. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-never-liked-the-philosophy-that-you-can-have-everything-and-be/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [In a machine, every part has a function. In a poem, every word needs to be there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/in-a-machine-every-part-has-a-function-in-a-poem-every-word-needs-to/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [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 think the more stability a person has, the more they can follow esoteric or intellectual pursuits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-think-the-more-stability-a-person-has-the-more-they-can-follow/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [I have a lot of respect for advertising. If I didn't teach and could go back in time, I might try and become a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/i-have-a-lot-of-respect-for-advertising-if-i-didn-t-teach-and-could/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) > [What I like best about teaching is that it allows me to explore my own interest with a group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/what-i-like-best-about-teaching-is-that-it-allows-me-to-explore-my/) [Elaine Equi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) [Explore all 31 Elaine Equi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“Art is not an object, but a way of looking at an object.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elaine Equi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-looking-at-an-object/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-looking-at-an-object/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/891/elaine-equi-20309_art_art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-lookin_508917.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Art is not an object, but a way of looking at an object.” — Elaine Equi", "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": "Elaine Equi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-equi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Art is not an object, but...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-looking-at-an-object/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-equi/art-is-not-an-object-but-a-way-of-looking-at-an-object/#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 } } ] } ```