--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The genuine artist is as much a…" description: "\"The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the revolutionary, yet how diametrically opposed are the products each distills from his dissati..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg" --- # The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the… ![“The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the revolutionary, yet how diametrically opposed are the products each distills from his dissatisfaction.” quote by Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg) > “The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the revolutionary, yet how diametrically opposed are the products each distills from his dissatisfaction.” [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists and revolutionaries share dissatisfaction, yet their outputs differ fundamentally. **In simple terms:** Both are dissatisfied, but produce different results. Key Takeaway Channel dissatisfaction into constructive work. Themes dissatisfaction revolution art Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - political activism - creative burnout - ideological conflict Key Concepts artist revolutionary product dissatisfaction Questions to Reflect On - What drives your dissatisfaction? - How can you transform it product? A Different Perspective Dissatisfaction can paralyze without direction. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) ## Related quotes > [“The transformed person is a revolutionary only because he has revolutionized himself. He gives the people inspiration by holding up a mirror to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vironika-tugaleva/the-transformed-person-is-a-revolutionary-only-because-he-has/) [Vironika Tugaleva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vironika-tugaleva/) > [A regular council was held with the Indians, who had come in on their ponies, and speeches were made on both sides through an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-regular-council-was-held-with-the-indians-who-had-come-in-on-their/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A willing, cheerful worker, with his heart in his job, will turn out more work and more satisfactory work in 44 hours than an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/a-willing-cheerful-worker-with-his-heart-in-his-job-will-turn-out/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [Well I DO want to go up into space, but more than that, I'm dissatisfied with the fact that humans have only gone to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takafumi-horie/well-i-do-want-to-go-up-into-space-but-more-than-that-i-m/) [Takafumi Horie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takafumi-horie/) > [If you're dissatisfied anywhere, New York is the place to be. If you're unhappy at college in Topeka, I don't know what there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-mckay/if-you-re-dissatisfied-anywhere-new-york-is-the-place-to-be-if-you-re/) [Nellie McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-mckay/) > [Jacob wrote that the true poet 'is like a man who is happy anywhere, in endless measure, if he is allowed to look at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/jacob-wrote-that-the-true-poet-is-like-a-man-who-is-happy-anywhere-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [As a reformer the liberal is dissatisfied with things as they are because they violate his exceptionally tender conscience… Liberalism does not advocate change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-barton-perry/as-a-reformer-the-liberal-is-dissatisfied-with-things-as-they-are/) [Ralph Barton Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-barton-perry/) > [I feel like I'm moving from a world where I was creating fantasies that weren't real inside - and very often feeling really dissatisfied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-rice/i-feel-like-i-m-moving-from-a-world-where-i-was-creating-fantasies/) [Damien Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-rice/) > [The inspiration to write? Perhaps it's not so much inspiration, as a NEED to write. I get itchy and guilty and dissatisfied when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-brown/the-inspiration-to-write-perhaps-it-s-not-so-much-inspiration-as-a/) [Eric Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-brown/) > [God will cleanse your sins if you yourself are dissatisfied with yourself and will keep on changing until you are perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/god-will-cleanse-your-sins-if-you-yourself-are-dissatisfied-with/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Many of the factors that we think will cause motivation, such as fair pay and a good manager, won't make you love your job.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/many-of-the-factors-that-we-think-will-cause-motivation-such-as-fair/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [It is no easy task to walk this earth and find peace. Inside of us, it would seem, something is at odds with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-rolheiser/it-is-no-easy-task-to-walk-this-earth-and-find-peace-inside-of-us-it/) [Ronald Rolheiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-rolheiser/) > [Marriages are always moving from one season to another. Sometimes we find ourselves in winter--discouraged, detached, and dissatisfied; other times we experience springtime, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-chapman/marriages-are-always-moving-from-one-season-to-another-sometimes-we/) [Gary Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-chapman/) > [Research is an organized method of trying to find out what you are going to do after you cannot do what you are doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kettering/research-is-an-organized-method-of-trying-to-find-out-what-you-are/) [Charles Kettering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kettering/) > [It is a sweet thing that we serve a dissatisfied God who has destinations in mind for us that we would never choose for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-david-tripp/it-is-a-sweet-thing-that-we-serve-a-dissatisfied-god-who-has/) [Paul David Tripp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-david-tripp/) ## More by Eric Hoffer > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“We lie the loudest when we lie to ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/we-lie-the-loudest-when-we-lie-to-ourselves/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Our originality shows itself most strikingly not in what we wholly originate but in what we do with that which we borrow from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/our-originality-shows-itself-most-strikingly-not-in-what-we-wholly/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The creative mind is the playful mind. Philosophy is the play and dance of ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-creative-mind-is-the-playful-mind-philosophy-is-the-play-and/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [It is also plausible that those movements with the greatest inner contradiction and between profession and practice - that is to say with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/it-is-also-plausible-that-those-movements-with-the-greatest-inner/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The best part of the art of living is to know how to grow old gracefully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-best-part-of-the-art-of-living-is-to-know-how-to-grow-old/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“In the alchemy of man's soul almost all noble attributes--courage, honor, love, hope, faith, duty, loyalty, etc.--can be transmuted into ruthlessness. Compassion alone stands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/in-the-alchemy-of-man-s-soul-almost-all-noble-attributes-courage/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The act of self-denial seems to confer on us the right to be harsh and merciless toward others. The impression somehow prevails that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-act-of-self-denial-seems-to-confer-on-us-the-right-to-be-harsh/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [A nation without dregs and malcontents, is orderly, decent, peaceful and pleasant, but perhaps without the seed of things to come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-nation-without-dregs-and-malcontents-is-orderly-decent-peaceful-and/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Compassion alone stands apart from the continuous traffic between good and evil proceeding within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/compassion-alone-stands-apart-from-the-continuous-traffic-between/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/there-are-many-who-find-a-good-alibi-far-more-attractive-than-an/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [A war is not won if the defeated enemy has not been turned into a friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-war-is-not-won-if-the-defeated-enemy-has-not-been-turned-into-a/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Man is the only creature that strives to surpass himself, and yearns for the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/man-is-the-only-creature-that-strives-to-surpass-himself-and-yearns/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [This food-and-shelter theory concerning man's efforts is without insight. The desire for praise is more imperative than the desire for food and shelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/this-food-and-shelter-theory-concerning-man-s-efforts-is-without/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) [Explore all 658 Eric Hoffer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) ## 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": "The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the revolutionary, yet how diametrically opposed are the products each distills from his dissatisfaction.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eric Hoffer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatisfied-person-as-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatisfied-person-as-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fab/eric-hoffer-343_art_the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatis_2635106.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the revolutionary, yet how diametrically opposed are…” — Eric Hoffer", "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": "Eric Hoffer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The genuine artist is as much...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatisfied-person-as-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-genuine-artist-is-as-much-a-dissatisfied-person-as-the/#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 } } ] } ```