--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think art is a total thing. A total…" description: "\"I think art is a total thing. A total person giving a contribution. It is an essence, a soul.. In my inner soul art and life are inseparable\" — Eva Hesse" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/997/eva-hesse-22074_art_i-think-art-is-a-total-thing-a-total-per_2228948.jpg" --- # I think art is a total thing. A total person giving a… ![“I think art is a total thing. A total person giving a contribution. It is an essence, a soul.. In my inner soul art and life are inseparable” quote by Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/997/eva-hesse-22074_art_i-think-art-is-a-total-thing-a-total-per_2228948.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/997/eva-hesse-22074_art_i-think-art-is-a-total-thing-a-total-per_2228948.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/997/eva-hesse-22074_art_i-think-art-is-a-total-thing-a-total-per_2228948.jpg) > “I think art is a total thing. A total person giving a contribution. It is an essence, a soul.. In my inner soul art and life are inseparable” [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) ## 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 an expression of the whole self, merging soul and existence into a unified contribution. **In simple terms:** Art reflects the whole person’s soul. Key Takeaway Create art that embodies your full self. Themes creativity identity expression Mood reflective inspired Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal journaling - public installations - teaching art - community projects Key Concepts existentialism holism aesthetic philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How does your inner soul guide your creative work? - In what ways can art become a bridge between personal and communal identity? A Different Perspective Art can be limited by external expectations and market pressures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art and life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-and-life/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Contribution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contribution/) [Essence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essence/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [In my inner soul art and life are inseparable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/in-my-inner-soul-art-and-life-are-inseparable/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Art and work and art and life are very connected and my whole life has been absurd. There isn't a thing in my life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/art-and-work-and-art-and-life-are-very-connected-and-my-whole-life/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Art and life are inseparable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/art-and-life-are-inseparable/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [For me there is no difference between art and life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rauschenberg/for-me-there-is-no-difference-between-art-and-life/) [Robert Rauschenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rauschenberg/) > [The new painting has broken down every distinction between art and life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-new-painting-has-broken-down-every-distinction-between-art-and/) [Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/) > [Art and life really are the same, and both can only be about a spiritual journey, a path towards a re-union with a supreme…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genesis-p-orridge/art-and-life-really-are-the-same-and-both-can-only-be-about-a/) [Genesis P-Orridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genesis-p-orridge/) > [We are concerned with the relationship between art and life. Contemporary art is only intelligible in terms of its relationship to our life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-elliott/we-are-concerned-with-the-relationship-between-art-and-life/) [David Elliott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-elliott/) > [The Difference Between Art and Life is that Art is More Bearable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/the-difference-between-art-and-life-is-that-art-is-more-bearable/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [The line between art and life should be kept as fluid, and perhaps indistinct, as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-kaprow/the-line-between-art-and-life-should-be-kept-as-fluid-and-perhaps/) [Allan Kaprow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-kaprow/) > [Art and life go together. I have to have a life filled with experiences to make art, and I have to have art around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelly-furtado/art-and-life-go-together-i-have-to-have-a-life-filled-with/) [Nelly Furtado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelly-furtado/) > [This concern which interests us more than anything else: the blurring of the distinction between art and life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/this-concern-which-interests-us-more-than-anything-else-the-blurring/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [Great artists are people who find the way to be themselves in their art. Any sort of pretension induces mediocrity in art and life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-fonteyn/great-artists-are-people-who-find-the-way-to-be-themselves-in-their/) [Margot Fonteyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-fonteyn/) > [Art and life ought to be hurriedly remarried and brought to live together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-walpole/art-and-life-ought-to-be-hurriedly-remarried-and-brought-to-live/) [Hugh Walpole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-walpole/) > [Art is indeed not the bread but the wine of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul/art-is-indeed-not-the-bread-but-the-wine-of-life/) [Jean Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul/) > [To approach a city, or even a city neighborhood, as if it were a larger architectural problem, capable of being given order by converting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/to-approach-a-city-or-even-a-city-neighborhood-as-if-it-were-a-larger/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) ## More by Eva Hesse > [There's not been one normal thing in my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/there-s-not-been-one-normal-thing-in-my-life/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [I am not sure what my stand on lasting really is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/i-am-not-sure-what-my-stand-on-lasting-really-is/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Don't ask what the work is. Rather, see what the work does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/don-t-ask-what-the-work-is-rather-see-what-the-work-does/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [I should like to achieve free, spontaneous painting delineating a powerful, strong structured image. One must be possible with the other. A difficult problem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/i-should-like-to-achieve-free-spontaneous-painting-delineating-a/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Artists don't think archivally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/artists-don-t-think-archivally/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Art and life are inseparable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/art-and-life-are-inseparable/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Life doesn't last; art doesn't last. It doesn't matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/life-doesn-t-last-art-doesn-t-last-it-doesn-t-matter/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [First feel sure of idea, then the execution will be easier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/first-feel-sure-of-idea-then-the-execution-will-be-easier/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Art is the easiest thing in my life, and that's ironic. It doesn't mean I've worked little on it, but it's the only thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/art-is-the-easiest-thing-in-my-life-and-that-s-ironic-it-doesn-t-mean/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Excellence has no sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/excellence-has-no-sex/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Chaos can be structured as non-chaos. That we know from Jackson Pollock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/chaos-can-be-structured-as-non-chaos-that-we-know-from-jackson-pollock/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [What makes a tight circle or a tight little square box more of an intellectual statement than something done emotionally, I don't know. Art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/what-makes-a-tight-circle-or-a-tight-little-square-box-more-of-an/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [I would like the work to be non-work. This means that it would find its way beyond my preconceptions...It is the unknown quantity from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/i-would-like-the-work-to-be-non-work-this-means-that-it-would-find/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [Life doesn't last, art doesn't last](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/life-doesn-t-last-art-doesn-t-last/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) > [I have the most openness about my art... It's total freedom and willingness to work. I'm willing really to walk on the edge, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-hesse/i-have-the-most-openness-about-my-art-it-s-total-freedom-and/) [Eva Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) [Explore all 28 Eva Hesse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-hesse/) ## 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": "I think art is a total thing. 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