--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't mind being miserable as long as…" description: "\"I don't mind being miserable as long as I'm painting well.\" — Grace Hartigan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png" --- # I don't mind being miserable as long as I'm painting well. ![“I don't mind being miserable as long as I'm painting well.” quote by Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png) > “I don't mind being miserable as long as I'm painting well.” [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She accepts personal unhappiness if it fuels artistic excellence. **In simple terms:** Unhappiness is okay when art thrives. Key Takeaway Prioritize creative quality over comfort. Themes art sacrifice creativity Mood reflective determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - studio work - artist retreats - creative blocks - career decisions Key Concepts existentialism artistic integrity Questions to Reflect On - Is the sacrifice worth the artistic result? - Can you find joy in the process? A Different Perspective Miserable feelings may still hinder long‑term health. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Memorable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memorable/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/) ## Related quotes > [You listen to the mind, you become miserable - otherwise, this today is paradise! And there is no other paradise, this today is nirvana.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/you-listen-to-the-mind-you-become-miserable-otherwise-this-today-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I don't know if I'm proud that I made it this far or miserable that it's been this long and I'm still suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn/i-don-t-know-if-i-m-proud-that-i-made-it-this-far-or-miserable-that/) [Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn/) > [I tried different techniques during my career, but I especially fell in love with painting with oil and pallette-knife. Every artwork is the result…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonid-afremov/i-tried-different-techniques-during-my-career-but-i-especially-fell/) Leonid Afremov > [I couldn't get out of my mind how miserable I'd been at the end of 10-win seasons. I'd gone from passion to obsession the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mack-brown/i-couldn-t-get-out-of-my-mind-how-miserable-i-d-been-at-the-end-of-10/) [Mack Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mack-brown/) > [The secret to so many artists living so long is that every painting is a new adventure. So, you see, they're always looking ahead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/the-secret-to-so-many-artists-living-so-long-is-that-every-painting/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [He's fat and a clown, Bill, a fat clown for all to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eamon-dunphy/he-s-fat-and-a-clown-bill-a-fat-clown-for-all-to-see/) [Eamon Dunphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eamon-dunphy/) > [Doing nothing gives me great pleasure. And believe me, I succeed wonderfully in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/doing-nothing-gives-me-great-pleasure-and-believe-me-i-succeed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A conversation does not have to be scintillating in order to be memorable. I once met a president of the United States, and his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cavett/a-conversation-does-not-have-to-be-scintillating-in-order-to-be/) [Dick Cavett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cavett/) > [Generous in spirit, richly poetic, and packed with memorable characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-millman/generous-in-spirit-richly-poetic-and-packed-with-memorable-characters/) [Lawrence Millman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-millman/) > [I'm memorable, its true." -Magnus, pg.229-](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-m-memorable-its-true-magnus-pg-229/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [He referred to me as an 'insufferable puffed-up prat'. This is a bit rich coming from a man who actually married his own mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-morrissey/he-referred-to-me-as-an-insufferable-puffed-up-prat-this-is-a-bit/) [Steven Morrissey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-morrissey/) > [If you look at the charts every year, there may be five or ten memorable songs from each year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-jackson/if-you-look-at-the-charts-every-year-there-may-be-five-or-ten/) [Randy Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-jackson/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Everything I do is more memorable and I understand music more than ever now. It's not a burden to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seungri/everything-i-do-is-more-memorable-and-i-understand-music-more-than/) [Seungri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seungri/) > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) ## More by Grace Hartigan > [A woman or a man creating feel very much the same way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/a-woman-or-a-man-creating-feel-very-much-the-same-way/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [Pop Art is not painting because painting must have content and emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/pop-art-is-not-painting-because-painting-must-have-content-and-emotion/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [If you're an extraordinarily gifted woman, the door is open. What women are fighting for is the right to be as mediocre as men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/if-you-re-an-extraordinarily-gifted-woman-the-door-is-open-what-women/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [I cannot expect even my own art to provide all of the answers, only to hope it keeps asking the right questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-cannot-expect-even-my-own-art-to-provide-all-of-the-answers-only-to/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [Now as before it is the vulgar and the vital and the possibility of its transformation into the beautiful which continues to challenge and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/now-as-before-it-is-the-vulgar-and-the-vital-and-the-possibility-of/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [In painting I try to make some logic out of the world that has been given to me in chaos. I have a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/in-painting-i-try-to-make-some-logic-out-of-the-world-that-has-been/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [Somehow, in painting I try to make some logic out of the world that has been given to me in chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/somehow-in-painting-i-try-to-make-some-logic-out-of-the-world-that/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [I don't see how you can create and not have the feeling that it is the most important, all-consuming thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-don-t-see-how-you-can-create-and-not-have-the-feeling-that-it-is/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [I didn't choose painting, it chose me.I didn't have a talent,i just had genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-didn-t-choose-painting-it-chose-me-i-didn-t-have-a-talent-i-just/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) > [I perceive the world in fragments. It is somewhat like being on a very fast train and getting glimpses of things in strange scales…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-perceive-the-world-in-fragments-it-is-somewhat-like-being-on-a-very/) [Grace Hartigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) [Explore all 11 Grace Hartigan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/) ## 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 don't mind being miserable as long as I'm painting well.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Grace Hartigan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as-i-m-painting-well/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as-i-m-painting-well/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/617/grace-hartigan-40052_artist_i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as_659137.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't mind being miserable as long as I'm painting well.” — Grace Hartigan", "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": "Grace Hartigan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hartigan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I don't mind being miserable as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as-i-m-painting-well/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hartigan/i-don-t-mind-being-miserable-as-long-as-i-m-painting-well/#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 } } ] } ```