--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've never found anything to be lacking…" description: "\"I've never found anything to be lacking in a blurry canvas. Quite the contrary: you can see many more things in it than in a sharply focused image. A l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e34/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-ve-never-found-anything-to-be-lacking_2697159.jpg" --- # I've never found anything to be lacking in a blurry… ![“I've never found anything to be lacking in a blurry canvas. Quite the contrary: you can see many more things in it than in a sharply focused image. A landscape painted with exactness forces you to see a determined number of clearly differentiated trees, while in a blurry canvas you can perceive as…” quote by Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e34/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-ve-never-found-anything-to-be-lacking_2697159.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e34/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-ve-never-found-anything-to-be-lacking_2697159.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e34/gerhard-richter-2249_art_i-ve-never-found-anything-to-be-lacking_2697159.jpg) > “I've never found anything to be lacking in a blurry canvas. Quite the contrary: you can see many more things in it than in a sharply focused image. A landscape painted with exactness forces you to see a determined number of clearly differentiated trees, while in a blurry canvas you can perceive as many trees as you want. The painting is more open.” [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. Blurry images invite open interpretation, allowing viewers to fill in details, unlike precise depictions that limit perception. **In simple terms:** Blurry art lets imagination add details. Key Takeaway Embrace ambiguity to spark creativity. Themes art perception creativity interpretation Mood curious reflective Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - gallery visits - art education - creative brainstorming - design critique - visual therapy Key Concepts subjectivity visual cognition open-endedness Questions to Reflect On - How does ambiguity affect your understanding? - When does clarity become restrictive? A Different Perspective Too much ambiguity can cause confusion or misinterpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Canvas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/canvas/) [Determined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determined/) [Exactness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exactness/) [Focused](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focused/) [Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscape/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) ## Related quotes > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No technique is possible when men are free. Technique requires predictability and, no less, exactness of prediction. It is necessary, then, that technique prevail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/no-technique-is-possible-when-men-are-free-technique-requires/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [The calculative exactness of practical life which the money economy has brought about corresponds to the ideal of natural science: to transform the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-simmel/the-calculative-exactness-of-practical-life-which-the-money-economy/) [Georg Simmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-simmel/) > [Desultory readers are seldom remarkable for the exactness of their learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/desultory-readers-are-seldom-remarkable-for-the-exactness-of-their/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Engineering training deals with the exact sciences. That sort of exactness makes for truth and conscience. It might be good for the world if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/engineering-training-deals-with-the-exact-sciences-that-sort-of/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [I believe that ideas such as absolute certitude, absolute exactness, final truth, etc. are figments of the imagination which should not be admissible in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-born/i-believe-that-ideas-such-as-absolute-certitude-absolute-exactness/) [Max Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-born/) > [The merit of painting lies in the exactness of reproduction. Painting is a science and all sciences are based on mathematics. No human inquiry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/the-merit-of-painting-lies-in-the-exactness-of-reproduction-painting/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [In proportion as the machine is improved and performs man's work with an ever increasing rapidity and exactness, the labourer, instead of prolonging his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-lafargue/in-proportion-as-the-machine-is-improved-and-performs-man-s-work-with/) [Paul Lafargue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-lafargue/) > [The object of geometry in all its measuring and computing, is to ascertain with exactness the plan of the great Geometer, to penetrate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-peirce/the-object-of-geometry-in-all-its-measuring-and-computing-is-to/) [Benjamin Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-peirce/) > [It will be contributing to bring forward the moment in which, seeing clearer into the nature of things, and having learnt to distinguish real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-will-be-contributing-to-bring-forward-the-moment-in-which-seeing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A great value of antiquity lies in the fact that its writings are the only ones that modern men still read with exactness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/a-great-value-of-antiquity-lies-in-the-fact-that-its-writings-are-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [On the ostensible exactitude of certain branches of human knowledge, including mathematics. The exactness is a fake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/on-the-ostensible-exactitude-of-certain-branches-of-human-knowledge/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Whatever does not spring from a man's free choice, or is only the result of instruction and guidance, does not enter into his very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-von-humboldt/whatever-does-not-spring-from-a-man-s-free-choice-or-is-only-the/) [Wilhelm von Humboldt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-von-humboldt/) > [He would be guilty of mortal sin, because he exposes himself to the danger of grievously offending God. Hence, before he acts he must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonsus-liguori/he-would-be-guilty-of-mortal-sin-because-he-exposes-himself-to-the/) [Alphonsus Liguori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonsus-liguori/) > [Sometimes very small children in a proper environment develop a skill and exactness in their work that can only surprise us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/sometimes-very-small-children-in-a-proper-environment-develop-a-skill/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) ## 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. But I needed the greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/a-work-of-art-is-itself-an-object-first-of-all-and-so-manipulation-is/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [The photograph is the only picture that can truly convey information, even if it is technically faulty and the object can barely be identified.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/the-photograph-is-the-only-picture-that-can-truly-convey-information/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [Perhaps the choice is a negative one, in that I was trying to avoid everything that touched on well-known issues - or any issues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/perhaps-the-choice-is-a-negative-one-in-that-i-was-trying-to-avoid/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [Gray is the color... the most important of all... absent of opinion, nothing, neither/nor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/gray-is-the-color-the-most-important-of-all-absent-of-opinion-nothing/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [All photographs are far more important than any painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/all-photographs-are-far-more-important-than-any-painting/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [You can compare it to dreams: you have a very specific and individual pictorial language that you either accept or that you can translate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/you-can-compare-it-to-dreams-you-have-a-very-specific-and-individual/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [What attracted me about my mirrors was the idea of having nothing manipulated in them. 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. 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've never found anything to be lacking in a blurry canvas. 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