--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do not think my painting has ever been…" description: "\"I do not think my painting has ever been revolutionary. It was not directed against any kind of painting. I have never wanted to prove that I was right..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfb/georges-braque-8052_artist_i-do-not-think-my-painting-has-ever-been_315165.jpg" --- # I do not think my painting has ever been revolutionary. It… ![“I do not think my painting has ever been revolutionary. It was not directed against any kind of painting. I have never wanted to prove that I was right and someone else wrong...” quote by Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfb/georges-braque-8052_artist_i-do-not-think-my-painting-has-ever-been_315165.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfb/georges-braque-8052_artist_i-do-not-think-my-painting-has-ever-been_315165.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfb/georges-braque-8052_artist_i-do-not-think-my-painting-has-ever-been_315165.jpg) > “I do not think my painting has ever been revolutionary. It was not directed against any kind of painting. I have never wanted to prove that I was right and someone else wrong...” [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The artist modestly denies being revolutionary, emphasizing humility and focus on art rather than competition. **In simple terms:** Denies being revolutionary, values humility. Key Takeaway Create art for its own sake. Themes art humility self‑assessment creativity Mood reflective thoughtful Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - gallery exhibitions - personal practice - art education - creative collaboration Key Concepts modernism artist identity innovation Questions to Reflect On - What drives an artist to innovate? - How does humility affect artistic legacy? A Different Perspective The statement may downplay the impact of artistic innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Modernism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modernism/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [With regard to life, modern painting is a revolutionary activity…We need it in order to transform the world into a more humane place where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wifredo-lam/with-regard-to-life-modern-painting-is-a-revolutionary-activity-we/) Wifredo Lam > [One has to seek Beauty and Truth, Sir! As I always say to my pupils, you have to work to the finish. There's only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-adolphe-bouguereau/one-has-to-seek-beauty-and-truth-sir-as-i-always-say-to-my-pupils-you/) William-Adolphe Bouguereau > [The kind of painting which I find exciting is not necessarily representational or non-representational, but it is musical and architectural... Whether this visual relationship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-nicholson/the-kind-of-painting-which-i-find-exciting-is-not-necessarily/) [Ben Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-nicholson/) > [And I think a painting has such a limited life anyway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rauschenberg/and-i-think-a-painting-has-such-a-limited-life-anyway/) [Robert Rauschenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rauschenberg/) > [I think only of my painting, and if I were to drop it, I think I'd go crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/i-think-only-of-my-painting-and-if-i-were-to-drop-it-i-think-i-d-go/) [Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/) > [I think a painting should include more experience than simply intended statement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-johns/i-think-a-painting-should-include-more-experience-than-simply/) [Jasper Johns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-johns/) > [I've explored a variety of directions and themes over the years. But I think in my painting you can see the signature of one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-frankenthaler/i-ve-explored-a-variety-of-directions-and-themes-over-the-years-but-i/) [Helen Frankenthaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-frankenthaler/) > [I think my painting is so autobiographical if anyone can take the trouble to read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-krasner/i-think-my-painting-is-so-autobiographical-if-anyone-can-take-the/) [Lee Krasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-krasner/) > [I think every painting should be the same size and the same color so they're all interchangeable and nobody thinks they have a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/i-think-every-painting-should-be-the-same-size-and-the-same-color-so/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) > [Photography brought a lot to painting because it forced artists to think about what painting could do that photography couldn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lanchester/photography-brought-a-lot-to-painting-because-it-forced-artists-to/) [John Lanchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lanchester/) > [I don't want to be a film-maker. I think painting is far more exciting and profound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/i-don-t-want-to-be-a-film-maker-i-think-painting-is-far-more-exciting/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [When you think of painting as painting it is rather absurd. The real world is before us - glorious sunlight and activity and fresh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-thiebaud/when-you-think-of-painting-as-painting-it-is-rather-absurd-the-real/) [Wayne Thiebaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-thiebaud/) > [I don't think I can do this - painting under observation. It's the worst thing there is, worse than being in the hospital.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/i-don-t-think-i-can-do-this-painting-under-observation-it-s-the-worst/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [What makes you think painting is any less difficult than brain surgery?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-willard/what-makes-you-think-painting-is-any-less-difficult-than-brain-surgery/) [Christopher Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-willard/) > [I think I'm painting a picture of two women but it may turn out to be a landscape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-think-i-m-painting-a-picture-of-two-women-but-it-may-turn-out-to-be/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) ## More by Georges Braque > [Writing is not describing, painting is not depicting. Verisimilitude is merely an illusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/writing-is-not-describing-painting-is-not-depicting-verisimilitude-is/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [In a painting, what counts is the unexpected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/in-a-painting-what-counts-is-the-unexpected/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [I am interposing overlaid planes a short way off... To make it understood that things are in front of each other instead of being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/i-am-interposing-overlaid-planes-a-short-way-off-to-make-it/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [I find that it is important to work slowly. Anyone who looks at such a canvas will follow the same path the artist took,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/i-find-that-it-is-important-to-work-slowly-anyone-who-looks-at-such-a/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [To explain away the mystery of a great painting - if such a feat were possible - would do irreparable harm... If there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/to-explain-away-the-mystery-of-a-great-painting-if-such-a-feat-were/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [We will never have repose. The present is perpetual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/we-will-never-have-repose-the-present-is-perpetual/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [Scientific perspective forces the objects in a picture to disappear away from the beholder instead of bringing them within his reach as painting should.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/scientific-perspective-forces-the-objects-in-a-picture-to-disappear/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [To define a thing is to substitute the definition for the thing itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/to-define-a-thing-is-to-substitute-the-definition-for-the-thing-itself/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [There is more sensitivity in technique than in the rest of the picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/there-is-more-sensitivity-in-technique-than-in-the-rest-of-the-picture/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [The function of Art is to disturb. Science reassures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/the-function-of-art-is-to-disturb-science-reassures/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [Illusions... are simple facts, but they have been created by the mind, by the spirit, and they are one of the justifications of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/illusions-are-simple-facts-but-they-have-been-created-by-the-mind-by/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [Perspective is a ghastly mistake which it has taken four centuries to redress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/perspective-is-a-ghastly-mistake-which-it-has-taken-four-centuries-to/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [Progress in art does not consist in reducing limitations, but in knowing them better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/progress-in-art-does-not-consist-in-reducing-limitations-but-in/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [I couldn't portray a women in all her natural loveliness.. I haven't the skill. No one has. I must, therefore, create a new sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/i-couldn-t-portray-a-women-in-all-her-natural-loveliness-i-haven-t/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) > [It is the limitation of means that determines style, gives rise to new forms and makes creativity possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-braque/it-is-the-limitation-of-means-that-determines-style-gives-rise-to-new/) [Georges Braque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) [Explore all 84 Georges Braque quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-braque/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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 > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [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 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/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I do not think my painting has ever been revolutionary. It was not directed against any kind of painting. 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