--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm never really sure what that word…" description: "\"I'm never really sure what that word means, but however inaccurately I use it, 'classical' was always my ideal, as long as I can remember, and somethin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67d/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-m-never-really-sure-what-that-word-mea_1808475.jpg" --- # I'm never really sure what that word means, but however… ![“I'm never really sure what that word means, but however inaccurately I use it, 'classical' was always my ideal, as long as I can remember, and something of that has always stayed with me, to this day. Of course, there were difficulties, because in comparison to my ideal, I didn't even come close.” quote by Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67d/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-m-never-really-sure-what-that-word-mea_1808475.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67d/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-m-never-really-sure-what-that-word-mea_1808475.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67d/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-m-never-really-sure-what-that-word-mea_1808475.jpg) > “I'm never really sure what that word means, but however inaccurately I use it, 'classical' was always my ideal, as long as I can remember, and something of that has always stayed with me, to this day. Of course, there were difficulties, because in comparison to my ideal, I didn't even come close.” [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker idealizes a timeless, classical aesthetic, feeling a persistent gap between that ideal and reality. **In simple terms:** Classical ideal feels distant yet enduring. Key Takeaway Accept imperfection while honoring your ideal. Themes art aesthetics idealism selfreflection Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal artistic development - museum curation - art education - public speaking Key Concepts classicalism nostalgia creative tension Questions to Reflect On - How does your ideal shape your work? - Can you find value in the gap? A Different Perspective Ideal may be unattainable, leading to frustration. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Classical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/classical/) [Comparison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comparison/) [Ideals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideals/) ## Related quotes > [I think there are people who use classical music to say, 'I am better than you, because I know all the rules and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-rieu/i-think-there-are-people-who-use-classical-music-to-say-i-am-better/) [Andre Rieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-rieu/) > [Andres Segovia, the great name for guitar, he put classical guitar on the map. He was the proponent of it, the best in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-benson/andres-segovia-the-great-name-for-guitar-he-put-classical-guitar-on/) [George Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-benson/) > [I love Adele and Lykke Li. I also listen to classical music as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/birdy/i-love-adele-and-lykke-li-i-also-listen-to-classical-music-as-well/) [Birdy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/birdy/) > [I like to incorporate classical songs that people know and throw a beat and some guitars on it to make it real crazy. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-keys/i-like-to-incorporate-classical-songs-that-people-know-and-throw-a/) [Alicia Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicia-keys/) > [Well, I very rarely watch classical adaptations, because they usually do very good books, and a lot of the things they do... I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-marsh/well-i-very-rarely-watch-classical-adaptations-because-they-usually/) [Jean Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-marsh/) > [First of all, we have to go back to the classical time control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-karpov/first-of-all-we-have-to-go-back-to-the-classical-time-control/) [Anatoly Karpov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-karpov/) > [“For eyes we have no models in the remotely antique.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/for-eyes-we-have-no-models-in-the-remotely-antique/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [I would say 'Home' is a lot richer and deeper than my earlier classical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anoushka-shankar/i-would-say-home-is-a-lot-richer-and-deeper-than-my-earlier-classical/) [Anoushka Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anoushka-shankar/) > [But if you listen to great piano players, both classical and jazz, there's a huge range of dynamics and colors and emotional expression that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-burton/but-if-you-listen-to-great-piano-players-both-classical-and-jazz/) [Gary Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-burton/) > [I listen to classical music very much. There's a lot of jazz that I don't enjoy listening to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-konitz/i-listen-to-classical-music-very-much-there-s-a-lot-of-jazz-that-i/) [Lee Konitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-konitz/) > [I studied classical opera, so I was always singing in Italian and German and French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wang-leehom/i-studied-classical-opera-so-i-was-always-singing-in-italian-and/) [Wang Leehom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wang-leehom/) > [To become a classical ballerina, you have to move to New York when you're 12 or 11 and that becomes your life. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-garner/to-become-a-classical-ballerina-you-have-to-move-to-new-york-when-you/) [Jennifer Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-garner/) > [I bring my classical training - some of it, but not all of it - and also my background and culture, to spirituals. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-battle/i-bring-my-classical-training-some-of-it-but-not-all-of-it-and-also/) [Kathleen Battle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-battle/) > [It's something he used to say when he was happy. It could be a very, very simple day. We might be sitting out on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-grant/it-s-something-he-used-to-say-when-he-was-happy-it-could-be-a-very/) [Jennifer Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-grant/) > [I'm very fond of classical music, especially Mozart. I find it relaxes me and helps me concentrate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guler-sabanci/i-m-very-fond-of-classical-music-especially-mozart-i-find-it-relaxes/) [Guler Sabanci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guler-sabanci/) ## More by Gerhard Richter > [Art shows us how to see things that are constructive and good, and to be an active part of that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/art-shows-us-how-to-see-things-that-are-constructive-and-good-and-to/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [They are specific places I have discovered here and there when I am on the road to take photos. I go especially to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/they-are-specific-places-i-have-discovered-here-and-there-when-i-am/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [To me, grey is the welcome and only possible equivalent for indifference, noncommitment, absence of opinion, absence of shape. But grey, like formlessness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/to-me-grey-is-the-welcome-and-only-possible-equivalent-for/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [Now that we do not have priests and philosophers any more, artists are the most important people in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/now-that-we-do-not-have-priests-and-philosophers-any-more-artists-are/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [Yes, we were amazed when that happened. It was a real joke to us. Konrad Lueg and I did a Happening, and we used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/yes-we-were-amazed-when-that-happened-it-was-a-real-joke-to-us-konrad/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [A work of art is itself an object, first of all, and so manipulation is unavoidable: it's a prerequisite. 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A piece of bought mirror. Just hung there, without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/what-attracted-me-about-my-mirrors-was-the-idea-of-having-nothing/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [But it is also untrue that I have nothing specific in mind. As with my landscapes: I see countless landscapes, photograph barely 1 in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/but-it-is-also-untrue-that-i-have-nothing-specific-in-mind-as-with-my/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [My landscapes are not only beautiful or nostalgic, with a Romantic or classical suggestion of lost Paradises, but above all 'untruthful'...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/my-landscapes-are-not-only-beautiful-or-nostalgic-with-a-romantic-or/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [I have always been structured. What has changed is the proportions. Now it is eight hours of paperwork and one of painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/i-have-always-been-structured-what-has-changed-is-the-proportions-now/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) [Explore all 176 Gerhard Richter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) ## 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. 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