--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The goal of an artist is to create the…" description: "\"The goal of an artist is to create the definitive work that cannot be surpassed.\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png" --- # The goal of an artist is to create the definitive work… ![“The goal of an artist is to create the definitive work that cannot be surpassed.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png) > “The goal of an artist is to create the definitive work that cannot be surpassed.” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. An artist should strive for a timeless masterpiece that stands above all others. **In simple terms:** Create an unrivaled masterpiece. Key Takeaway Aim for timeless excellence. Themes art ambition legacy Mood inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - painting a sculpture - writing a novel - composing music Key Concepts creative perfection competition philosophy of art Questions to Reflect On - Is absolute superiority possible? - What defines a definitive work? A Different Perspective Perfection is subjective and may never be truly achieved. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [ \[My\] goal as an artist is to create increasingly complex images with greater and greater clarity of form and intensity of vision. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ballen/my-goal-as-an-artist-is-to-create-increasingly-complex-images-with/) [Roger Ballen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ballen/) > [The artist must create himself or be born again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-levertov/the-artist-must-create-himself-or-be-born-again/) [Denise Levertov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-levertov/) > [My goal as an artist is to always be true to who I am and give my fans music they will enjoy for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-hill/my-goal-as-an-artist-is-to-always-be-true-to-who-i-am-and-give-my/) [Faith Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-hill/) > [The good work proceeds with tenacity, intention, without interruption, with an equal measure of passion and reason and it must surpass that goal the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/odilon-redon/the-good-work-proceeds-with-tenacity-intention-without-interruption/) [Odilon Redon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/odilon-redon/) > [I don't know what makes someone hip. The goal is artist achievement and the best work we can do with no limitation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-rubin/i-don-t-know-what-makes-someone-hip-the-goal-is-artist-achievement/) [Rick Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-rubin/) > [“The goal of the artist is not to solve a question irrefutably, but to force people to love life in all its countless, inexhaustible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/the-goal-of-the-artist-is-not-to-solve-a-question-irrefutably-but-to/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The goal of the artist is not to resolve life's mysteries, but to deepen them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-uelsmann/the-goal-of-the-artist-is-not-to-resolve-life-s-mysteries-but-to/) [Jerry Uelsmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-uelsmann/) > [I would love to do musicals, sitcoms and even television talk shows. I think I have the potential. But most importantly, my ultimate goal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-park/i-would-love-to-do-musicals-sitcoms-and-even-television-talk-shows-i/) [Jamie Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-park/) > [Art and war are opposites, so our goal as an artist is to build and create, not destroy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-polunin/art-and-war-are-opposites-so-our-goal-as-an-artist-is-to-build-and/) [Sergei Polunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-polunin/) > [Your best as an artist is to create something that resonates for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/your-best-as-an-artist-is-to-create-something-that-resonates-for-you/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [“To question the world around us and all its complexities is not blasphamy, but simply using the mind God gave us for its intended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-marrero/to-question-the-world-around-us-and-all-its-complexities-is-not/) [Cristina Marrero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-marrero/) > [One of the beauties of being an artist is that you can create a whole new world, with circumstances that are better in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-sendak/one-of-the-beauties-of-being-an-artist-is-that-you-can-create-a-whole/) [Maurice Sendak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-sendak/) > [The artist must create a spark before he can make a fire and before art is born, the artist must be ready to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auguste-rodin/the-artist-must-create-a-spark-before-he-can-make-a-fire-and-before/) [Auguste Rodin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/auguste-rodin/) > [Being beautiful can be a curse, especially if you want to be an artist and create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliette-lewis/being-beautiful-can-be-a-curse-especially-if-you-want-to-be-an-artist/) [Juliette Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliette-lewis/) > [An artist should create beautiful things, but should put nothing of his own life into them. We live in an age when men treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/an-artist-should-create-beautiful-things-but-should-put-nothing-of/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## 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 goal of an artist is to create the definitive work that cannot be surpassed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Bernard Shaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-definitive-work-that-cannot-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-definitive-work-that-cannot-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/283/george-bernard-shaw-68_art_the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-d_1309741.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The goal of an artist is to create the definitive work that cannot be surpassed.” — George Bernard Shaw", "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": "George Bernard Shaw", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The goal of an artist is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-definitive-work-that-cannot-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-definitive-work-that-cannot-be/#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 } } ] } ```