--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every artist has a central story to tell…" description: "\"Every artist has a central story to tell, and the difficulty, the impossible task, is trying to present that story in pictures\" — Gregory Crewdson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg" --- # Every artist has a central story to tell, and the… ![“Every artist has a central story to tell, and the difficulty, the impossible task, is trying to present that story in pictures” quote by Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg) > “Every artist has a central story to tell, and the difficulty, the impossible task, is trying to present that story in pictures” [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists struggle to translate their core narrative into visual form, a daunting creative challenge. **In simple terms:** Artists find it hard to show their story in pictures. Key Takeaway Focus on clear visual storytelling. Themes art creativity communication Mood inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical advice When to use this quote - gallery exhibitions - personal projects - film making Key Concepts visual narrative storytelling challenge Questions to Reflect On - What story do you want to tell? - How can you simplify complex ideas? A Different Perspective Visual media may limit narrative depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) ## Related quotes > [“I feel very strongly that every artist has one central story to tell. The struggle is to tell and retell that story over and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-feel-very-strongly-that-every-artist-has-one-central-story-to-tell/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [“I am sorry, as well, to present such a sketchy and disappointing exegesis of what is in fact the central part of my story.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-am-sorry-as-well-to-present-such-a-sketchy-and-disappointing/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [As an artist, it is central to be unsatisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-calcagno/as-an-artist-it-is-central-to-be-unsatisfied/) Lawrence Calcagno > [“For me, the story about the pictures is about almost losing myself, and coming back, and what it means to be deeply involved in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-leibovitz/for-me-the-story-about-the-pictures-is-about-almost-losing-myself-and/) [Annie Leibovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-leibovitz/) > [How you carry a story in pictures is different than how you do it in text.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/how-you-carry-a-story-in-pictures-is-different-than-how-you-do-it-in/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [A lot of fashion photographers are telling a story with their pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-macken/a-lot-of-fashion-photographers-are-telling-a-story-with-their-pictures/) [Eoin Macken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-macken/) > [To be a person is to have a story to tell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/to-be-a-person-is-to-have-a-story-to-tell/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [“He must tell his own story.' 'But he will tell only half of it.' 'A quarter would be enough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/he-must-tell-his-own-story-but-he-will-tell-only-half-of-it-a-quarter/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Write like you are the last person on earth; like no one will ever read your story. Tell the story YOU want to read!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/write-like-you-are-the-last-person-on-earth-like-no-one-will-ever/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [“So, then. You want a story and I will tell you one. But just the one. Don’t either of you ask me for more.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/so-then-you-want-a-story-and-i-will-tell-you-one-but-just-the-one-don/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [We all have a story to tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/he-is-we/we-all-have-a-story-to-tell/) He Is We > [“Behind the story I tell is the one I don't. Behind the story you hear is the one I wish I could make you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/behind-the-story-i-tell-is-the-one-i-don-t-behind-the-story-you-hear/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [everybody has a story to tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-strummer/everybody-has-a-story-to-tell/) [Joe Strummer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-strummer/) > [It wasn't until my fifth or sixth book where I realized I'm trying to do the same thing in every story I tell, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/it-wasn-t-until-my-fifth-or-sixth-book-where-i-realized-i-m-trying-to/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“I always loved it when I had a story to tell her, because her attention was complete and felt like sunlight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-parker/i-always-loved-it-when-i-had-a-story-to-tell-her-because-her/) [Robert B. Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-parker/) ## More by Gregory Crewdson > [Originally, one of the reasons I was drawn to photography, as opposed to painting or sculpture or installation, is that of all the arts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/originally-one-of-the-reasons-i-was-drawn-to-photography-as-opposed/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [The suburban landscape is alien and strange and exotic. I photograph it out of longing and desire. My photographs are also about repression and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/the-suburban-landscape-is-alien-and-strange-and-exotic-i-photograph/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I was really fixated when I was a child. Again my mother was just talking to me about this, about how I would how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-was-really-fixated-when-i-was-a-child-again-my-mother-was-just/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [All my pictures are very voyeuristic, but ultimately I'm looking at what lurks in my own interior. I make photographs because I want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/all-my-pictures-are-very-voyeuristic-but-ultimately-i-m-looking-at/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I never know what to call the subjects in my pictures because I'm uncomfortable with the word actor. I think maybe subjects might be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-never-know-what-to-call-the-subjects-in-my-pictures-because-i-m/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [It is really important to have an obsessive need to construct something, to understand something from your own experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/it-is-really-important-to-have-an-obsessive-need-to-construct/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [There's a parallel between me going through these enormous efforts to try to make a moment that means something - and in a way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/there-s-a-parallel-between-me-going-through-these-enormous-efforts-to/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [What the artist attempts to do is to try and tell a story. Attempting to give physical expression to a story that's internal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/what-the-artist-attempts-to-do-is-to-try-and-tell-a-story-attempting/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I have always been fascinated by the poetic condition of twilight. By its transformative quality. Its power of turning the ordinary into something magical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-have-always-been-fascinated-by-the-poetic-condition-of-twilight-by/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [My pictures are about everyday life combined with theatrical effect. I want them to feel outside of time, to take something routine and make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/my-pictures-are-about-everyday-life-combined-with-theatrical-effect-i/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I think my pictures are really about a kind of tension between my need to make a perfect picture and the impossibility of doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-think-my-pictures-are-really-about-a-kind-of-tension-between-my/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I want to privilege the moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-want-to-privilege-the-moment/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I'm very moved by the fact that people are drawn into the pictures and that they do bring their own history and their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-m-very-moved-by-the-fact-that-people-are-drawn-into-the-pictures/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [I was never conscious of filming except for when I was location scouting. In a way, that is the most important part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/i-was-never-conscious-of-filming-except-for-when-i-was-location/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [My mom just recently reminded me that I used to build these little miniature worlds outside at our country house and populate it with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/my-mom-just-recently-reminded-me-that-i-used-to-build-these-little/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) [Explore all 40 Gregory Crewdson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) ## 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": "Every artist has a central story to tell, and the difficulty, the impossible task, is trying to present that story in pictures", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gregory Crewdson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell-and-the-difficulty-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell-and-the-difficulty-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c85/gregory-crewdson-16134_art_every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell_2818321.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Every artist has a central story to tell, and the difficulty, the impossible task, is trying to present that…” — Gregory Crewdson", "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": "Gregory Crewdson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Every artist has a central story...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell-and-the-difficulty-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/every-artist-has-a-central-story-to-tell-and-the-difficulty-the/#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 } } ] } ```