--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It goes against an artist's grain to…" description: "\"It goes against an artist's grain to retire. But whether he retires or not, he will age... What work will get done in the remaining time? ...Can he fin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/334/eric-maisel-3062_age_it-goes-against-an-artist-s-grain-to-ret_133761.jpg" --- # It goes against an artist's grain to retire. But whether… ![“It goes against an artist's grain to retire. But whether he retires or not, he will age... What work will get done in the remaining time? ...Can he find a little peace in this twilight? Or must he still rush on, restlessly and hungrily, to the very end?” quote by Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/334/eric-maisel-3062_age_it-goes-against-an-artist-s-grain-to-ret_133761.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/334/eric-maisel-3062_age_it-goes-against-an-artist-s-grain-to-ret_133761.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/334/eric-maisel-3062_age_it-goes-against-an-artist-s-grain-to-ret_133761.jpg) > “It goes against an artist's grain to retire. But whether he retires or not, he will age... What work will get done in the remaining time? ...Can he find a little peace in this twilight? Or must he still rush on, restlessly and hungrily, to the very end?” [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists resist retirement, yet aging limits time; they must decide whether to seek peace or continue restless creation. **In simple terms:** Aging limits time; artists must choose peace or relentless work. Key Takeaway Balance legacy with personal well‑being. Themes aging creativity life purpose Mood thoughtful inspired Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - gallery shows - personal retreats - mentor programs Key Concepts legacy building self‑care artistic drive Questions to Reflect On - What does peace look like? - How to balance urgency and rest? A Different Perspective Rest may feel unproductive to some. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ends/) [Goes Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goes-artist-888298/) [Grain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grain/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Retire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retire/) [Retire Retires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retire-retires-1528208/) [Retires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retires/) [Retires Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retires-age-1528209/) [Retiring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retiring/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Twilight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twilight/) ## Related quotes > [You retire when you are sick and when you can't do it any more or when the public retires you. That's the most painful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julio-iglesias/you-retire-when-you-are-sick-and-when-you-can-t-do-it-any-more-or/) [Julio Iglesias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julio-iglesias/) > [“Art value always goes up once the artist’s associated with fucked-up things such as cutting off his own ear like Van Gogh, or marrying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/art-value-always-goes-up-once-the-artist-s-associated-with-fucked-up/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [You can usually tell when people aren't being authentic, but that goes for every artist, not just white artists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yelawolf/you-can-usually-tell-when-people-aren-t-being-authentic-but-that-goes/) [Yelawolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yelawolf/) > [I don't want to put myself in any kind of a box as far as my sound goes, because being an artist is fluid.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-combs/i-don-t-want-to-put-myself-in-any-kind-of-a-box-as-far-as-my-sound/) [Luke Combs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-combs/) > [Happy is she that from the world retires, and carries with her what the world admires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-waller/happy-is-she-that-from-the-world-retires-and-carries-with-her-what/) [Edmund Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-waller/) > [The thoughtful soul to solitude retires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-khayy-m/the-thoughtful-soul-to-solitude-retires/) [Omar Khayyam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-khayy-m/) > [You never replace a great scholar who retires. 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You might not work as much, but who's going to turn down a great part working all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soupy-sales/nobody-ever-retires-in-our-business-you-might-not-work-as-much-but/) [Soupy Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soupy-sales/) > [The athlete has the advantage of being able to advertise in the media what he wants to do when he retires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mikan/the-athlete-has-the-advantage-of-being-able-to-advertise-in-the-media/) [George Mikan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mikan/) > [If I'm watching my favorite boxer, and he's just won the heavyweight championship of the world, and he retires, it kind of makes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-sixx/if-i-m-watching-my-favorite-boxer-and-he-s-just-won-the-heavyweight/) [Nikki Sixx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-sixx/) > [I don't think anybody ever really just retires where they don't do anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ozzie-smith/i-don-t-think-anybody-ever-really-just-retires-where-they-don-t-do/) [Ozzie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ozzie-smith/) > [When the Greatest of All Time retires, people are going to want to see that moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ajla-tomljanovic/when-the-greatest-of-all-time-retires-people-are-going-to-want-to-see/) [Ajla Tomljanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ajla-tomljanovic/) > [Conductors start getting good when everybody else retires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-rattle/conductors-start-getting-good-when-everybody-else-retires/) [Simon Rattle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-rattle/) ## More by Eric Maisel > [Affirmations need to be used if they are to become incorporated into the fabric of your being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/affirmations-need-to-be-used-if-they-are-to-become-incorporated-into/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [The wise artist makes peace with the fact that he will understand less than he had anticipated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/the-wise-artist-makes-peace-with-the-fact-that-he-will-understand/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [Creativity requires introspection, self-examination, and a willingness to take risks. Because of this, artists are perhaps more susceptible to self-doubt and despair than those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/creativity-requires-introspection-self-examination-and-a-willingness/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [You can't plan in advance for everything - every mood swing, every mistake you might make in execution, every shift in your circumstances. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/you-can-t-plan-in-advance-for-everything-every-mood-swing-every/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [It is in an artist's real interest to congratulate herself more often: not out of narcissism, but in her role as her own dear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/it-is-in-an-artist-s-real-interest-to-congratulate-herself-more-often/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [“What if you can't help but judge life negatively? 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If you hold that it is outside of yourself and must be tracked down, you have one idea of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/how-you-conceptualize-meaning-matters-if-you-hold-that-it-is-outside/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [Artists have wild desires and a terrible hunger to achieve... Without it they haven't the juice for striving or loving. But desire also can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/artists-have-wild-desires-and-a-terrible-hunger-to-achieve-without-it/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [If you bring your sexual impulses to your creative work... you'll be working from deep in the genetic code, down where life wants to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/if-you-bring-your-sexual-impulses-to-your-creative-work-you-ll-be/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [The artist is a god, but he is also an idiot. That is the human way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/the-artist-is-a-god-but-he-is-also-an-idiot-that-is-the-human-way/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [Boredom is the thing that regularly arrives between excitements and episodes of meaning: it is as natural as the tides, and in it an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/boredom-is-the-thing-that-regularly-arrives-between-excitements-and/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [The middle way cannot be achieved by dividing two extremes in half.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/the-middle-way-cannot-be-achieved-by-dividing-two-extremes-in-half/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) > [An inability to choose is a hallmark of anxiety... The too-anxious artist, afraid to choose, will halt dead in the water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-maisel/an-inability-to-choose-is-a-hallmark-of-anxiety-the-too-anxious/) [Eric Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) [Explore all 141 Eric Maisel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-maisel/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? 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That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) [Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It goes against an artist's grain to retire. But whether he retires or not, he will age... What work will get done in the remaining time? ...Can he find a little peace in this twilight? 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