--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is what I think art is and what I…" description: "\"This is what I think art is and what I demand of it: that it pull everyone in, that it show one person another's most intimate thoughts and feelings, t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg" --- # This is what I think art is and what I demand of it: that… ![“This is what I think art is and what I demand of it: that it pull everyone in, that it show one person another's most intimate thoughts and feelings, that it throw open the window of the soul.” quote by Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg) > “This is what I think art is and what I demand of it: that it pull everyone in, that it show one person another's most intimate thoughts and feelings, that it throw open the window of the soul.” [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art should deeply connect people, revealing inner thoughts and opening emotional windows. **In simple terms:** Art connects hearts. Key Takeaway Seek art that moves you emotionally. Themes connection empathy expression Mood inspired reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - gallery visits - personal journaling - creative workshops - therapy sessions Key Concepts intimacy psychology creativity Questions to Reflect On - What artwork has opened your soul? - How do you create space for emotional art? A Different Perspective Not all art achieves this depth; taste varies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-demand-3631581/) [Art is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-is/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Intimate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intimate/) [Intimate Thoughts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intimate-thoughts-1393298/) [Person Intimate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/person-intimate-2771524/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Think Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-art/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Thoughts and feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thoughts-and-feelings/) [Window](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/window/) ## Related quotes > [I think your most intimate thoughts are only honest when they're in your head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-marling/i-think-your-most-intimate-thoughts-are-only-honest-when-they-re-in/) [Laura Marling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-marling/) > [If you are ready to be intimate, you will encourage the other person also to be intimate. Your unpretentious simplicity will allow the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/if-you-are-ready-to-be-intimate-you-will-encourage-the-other-person/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“I'm no pessimist. I don't loathe art because I couldn't live without devoting all my time to it. I love it as the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingo-f-walther/i-m-no-pessimist-i-don-t-loathe-art-because-i-couldn-t-live-without/) [Ingo F. Walther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingo-f-walther/) > [Sharing your most intimate thoughts can be a disturbing and messy experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wilson/sharing-your-most-intimate-thoughts-can-be-a-disturbing-and-messy/) [John Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wilson/) > [Words themselves are the intimate attire of thoughts and feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-elizabeth-gordon/words-themselves-are-the-intimate-attire-of-thoughts-and-feelings/) [Karen Elizabeth Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-elizabeth-gordon/) > [I am increasingly unimpressed by works of art that require a college degree to understand. I think that art should be for everyone. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-am-increasingly-unimpressed-by-works-of-art-that-require-a-college/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [I think as much as possible, an artist, if he has any kind of social or political concern, has to…expose as much as possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-haring/i-think-as-much-as-possible-an-artist-if-he-has-any-kind-of-social-or/) [Keith Haring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-haring/) > [I believe in advertisement and media completely. My art and my personal life are based in it. I think that the art world would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-koons/i-believe-in-advertisement-and-media-completely-my-art-and-my/) [Jeff Koons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-koons/) > [I think of art as a glue, a cultural and social glue. It's one of the means that has served to show us the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-fischl/i-think-of-art-as-a-glue-a-cultural-and-social-glue-it-s-one-of-the/) [Eric Fischl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-fischl/) > [When you think about alien intelligences making art, you then have to think about what art is and how bound up it is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/when-you-think-about-alien-intelligences-making-art-you-then-have-to/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [I don't think art is a goal orientated business. I don't do things for the challenges, I only do them because I love them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-lake/i-don-t-think-art-is-a-goal-orientated-business-i-don-t-do-things-for/) [Greg Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-lake/) > [It's sometimes hard to talk about politics and art. Obviously, I have my core beliefs, but I think art is best when it's troublesome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/it-s-sometimes-hard-to-talk-about-politics-and-art-obviously-i-have/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [I don't think it's about art being a career but it's about making sure that if art is something that you love, something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-kay/i-don-t-think-it-s-about-art-being-a-career-but-it-s-about-making/) [Sarah Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-kay/) > [I don't think art is propaganda; it should be something that liberates the soul, provokes the imagination and encourages people to go further. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-haring/i-don-t-think-art-is-propaganda-it-should-be-something-that-liberates/) [Keith Haring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-haring/) > [I think art was the one thing my high school didn't give. And I think that was probably one reason why I was interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-lichtenstein/i-think-art-was-the-one-thing-my-high-school-didn-t-give-and-i-think/) [Roy Lichtenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-lichtenstein/) ## More by Felix Mendelssohn > [Though everything else may appear shallow and repulsive, even the smallest task in music is so absorbing, and carries us so far away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/though-everything-else-may-appear-shallow-and-repulsive-even-the/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [It's not that music is too imprecise for words, but too precise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/it-s-not-that-music-is-too-imprecise-for-words-but-too-precise/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [“I stayed at home because I prefer to be in my own room, with my own family, or in my garden — which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/i-stayed-at-home-because-i-prefer-to-be-in-my-own-room-with-my-own/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [Life and art are not two different things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/life-and-art-are-not-two-different-things/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [I dislike nothing more than finding fault with a man's nature or talent; it only depresses and worries and does no good; one cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/i-dislike-nothing-more-than-finding-fault-with-a-man-s-nature-or/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [I know perfectly well that no musician can make his thoughts or his talents different to what Heaven has made them; but I also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/i-know-perfectly-well-that-no-musician-can-make-his-thoughts-or-his/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [Ever since I began to compose, I have remained true to my starting principle: not to write a page because no matter what public,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/ever-since-i-began-to-compose-i-have-remained-true-to-my-starting/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [Never mind, put any book on the piano, and someone can turn from time to time, so I need not look as though I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/never-mind-put-any-book-on-the-piano-and-someone-can-turn-from-time/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [These, too, seem to me so ambiguous, so vague, so easily misunderstood in comparison to genuine music, which fills the soul with a thousand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/these-too-seem-to-me-so-ambiguous-so-vague-so-easily-misunderstood-in/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [Pray to God that He might create is us a clean heart and renew a right spirit within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/pray-to-god-that-he-might-create-is-us-a-clean-heart-and-renew-a/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [Such a divine profession is art! When everything else looks so stale and disgustingly vacuous, so enthralls even the littlest real effort of art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/such-a-divine-profession-is-art-when-everything-else-looks-so-stale/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [No one can bar me from joyfully proceeding on what the great masters have left us; after all, to rediscover everything again, should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/no-one-can-bar-me-from-joyfully-proceeding-on-what-the-great-masters/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [People often complain that music is too ambiguous, that what they should think when they hear it is so unclear, whereas everyone understands words.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/people-often-complain-that-music-is-too-ambiguous-that-what-they/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [And do you agree with me, that the first condition of an artist should be to bear respect toward what is great, and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/and-do-you-agree-with-me-that-the-first-condition-of-an-artist-should/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) > [The essence of beauty is unity in variety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/the-essence-of-beauty-is-unity-in-variety/) [Felix Mendelssohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) [Explore all 20 Felix Mendelssohn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/) ## 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": "This is what I think art is and what I demand of it: that it pull everyone in, that it show one person another's most intimate thoughts and feelings, that it throw open the window of the soul.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Felix Mendelssohn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-demand-of-it-that-it-pull/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-demand-of-it-that-it-pull/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b9/felix-mendelssohn-27271_art_this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-d_406168.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is what I think art is and what I demand of it: that it pull everyone in, that it show one person…” — Felix Mendelssohn", "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": "Felix Mendelssohn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-mendelssohn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "This is what I think art...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-demand-of-it-that-it-pull/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-mendelssohn/this-is-what-i-think-art-is-and-what-i-demand-of-it-that-it-pull/#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 } } ] } ```