--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To talk about paintings is not only…" description: "\"To talk about paintings is not only difficult but perhaps pointless too. You can only express in words what words are capable of expressing-- what lang..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/gerhard-richter-2249_artist_to-talk-about-paintings-is-not-only-diff_2901714.jpg" --- # To talk about paintings is not only difficult but perhaps… ![“To talk about paintings is not only difficult but perhaps pointless too. You can only express in words what words are capable of expressing-- what language can communicate. Painting has nothing to do with that.” quote by Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/gerhard-richter-2249_artist_to-talk-about-paintings-is-not-only-diff_2901714.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/gerhard-richter-2249_artist_to-talk-about-paintings-is-not-only-diff_2901714.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/gerhard-richter-2249_artist_to-talk-about-paintings-is-not-only-diff_2901714.jpg) > “To talk about paintings is not only difficult but perhaps pointless too. You can only express in words what words are capable of expressing-- what language can communicate. Painting has nothing to do with that.” [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. Language is limited; painting expresses what words cannot, making verbal description often futile. **In simple terms:** Words can’t fully describe paintings. Key Takeaway Accept limits of verbal art critique. Themes art communication language expression Mood contemplative analytical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - gallery tours - art education - creative writing about art Key Concepts aesthetics semiotics visual rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - What can words convey about visual art? - When is description helpful? A Different Perspective May undervalue the role of description in art appreciation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) ## Related quotes > [Expressing myself through language was always something that I had had to learn to do more so than others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maajid-nawaz/expressing-myself-through-language-was-always-something-that-i-had/) [Maajid Nawaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maajid-nawaz/) > [I get letters from people about my work. The thing that pleases me most is that my work touches their feelings. In fact, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-wyeth/i-get-letters-from-people-about-my-work-the-thing-that-pleases-me/) [Andrew Wyeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-wyeth/) > [It's absurd to talk about paintings that you haven't finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cy-twombly/it-s-absurd-to-talk-about-paintings-that-you-haven-t-finished/) [Cy Twombly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cy-twombly/) > [I don’t like to talk about what my paintings mean since they are so personal, so I like to leave it up to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-earley/i-don-t-like-to-talk-about-what-my-paintings-mean-since-they-are-so/) Lori Earley > [You don't talk about paintings, you look at them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-auguste-renoir/you-don-t-talk-about-paintings-you-look-at-them/) [Pierre-Auguste Renoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-auguste-renoir/) > [Does any art have a practical value? People love to talk about how expensive a painting is. That's the only way we can talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/does-any-art-have-a-practical-value-people-love-to-talk-about-how/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [There's been too much attention on marketing. Can't we just talk about the paintings?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/there-s-been-too-much-attention-on-marketing-can-t-we-just-talk-about/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I walked 10 miles in this dark road but still,i didn't still see the ending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cath-chatto/i-walked-10-miles-in-this-dark-road-but-still-i-didn-t-still-see-the/) [Cath Chatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cath-chatto/) > [I love 'Pointless.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-lycett/i-love-pointless/) [Joe Lycett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-lycett/) > [Might have, could have, may have, should have—the haves and have nots reduced to pointless possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-brooks/might-have-could-have-may-have-should-have-the-haves-and-have-nots/) [Terry Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-brooks/) > [We had the city trying to demolish two of our exhibition spaces, which was at first pretty disturbing. But following the freak-out is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsha-kaechele/we-had-the-city-trying-to-demolish-two-of-our-exhibition-spaces-which/) [Kirsha Kaechele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsha-kaechele/) > [There comes a time in your life when you have to let go of all the pointless drama and the people who create it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-comes-a-time-in-your-life-when-you-have-to-let-go-of-all-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not going to drag it out or make a point, because points are pointless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-jordan/i-m-not-going-to-drag-it-out-or-make-a-point-because-points-are/) [Simon Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-jordan/) > [The Fundamental Principle that governs - or ought to govern -human affairs if we wish to avoid misunderstandings, conflicts, or pointless utopias, is negotiation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/the-fundamental-principle-that-governs-or-ought-to-govern-human/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [It's pointless to be critical of your stuff once it's done. I don't spend a lot of time agonising over it. It's of no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/it-s-pointless-to-be-critical-of-your-stuff-once-it-s-done-i-don-t/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) ## 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 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": "To talk about paintings is not only difficult but perhaps pointless too. You can only express in words what words are capable of expressing-- what language can communicate. 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