--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The artist himself is actually the…" description: "\"The artist himself is actually the subject in everything after, say, 1900. Eventually, art becomes so removed from the community that you have to know ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/gus-van-sant-5023_art_the-artist-himself-is-actually-the-subje_239100.png" --- # The artist himself is actually the subject in everything… ![“The artist himself is actually the subject in everything after, say, 1900. Eventually, art becomes so removed from the community that you have to know about the artist before you can even look at the painting, because there is a conceptual idea going on.” quote by Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/gus-van-sant-5023_art_the-artist-himself-is-actually-the-subje_239100.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/gus-van-sant-5023_art_the-artist-himself-is-actually-the-subje_239100.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/gus-van-sant-5023_art_the-artist-himself-is-actually-the-subje_239100.png) > “The artist himself is actually the subject in everything after, say, 1900. Eventually, art becomes so removed from the community that you have to know about the artist before you can even look at the painting, because there is a conceptual idea going on.” [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern art often centers on the artist’s identity, making the work dependent on knowing the creator’s concept. **In simple terms:** Art focuses on the artist’s idea. Key Takeaway Consider the artist’s intent when viewing art. Themes art identity conceptualism Mood analytical critical Type theoretical observational When to use this quote - gallery visits - art criticism - museum tours Key Concepts post‑modernism artist as brand Questions to Reflect On - What does this focus reveal about cultural values? - How does it affect accessibility? A Different Perspective Can alienate viewers unfamiliar with the artist. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) ## Related quotes > [I have never understood, for instance, why some people see contemporary art as divided between 'painting' and 'conceptual art', as though this represented a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-craig-martin/i-have-never-understood-for-instance-why-some-people-see-contemporary/) [Michael Craig-Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-craig-martin/) > [The detective novel is the art-for-art's-sake of our yawning Philistinism, the classic example of a specialized form of art removed from contact with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-pritchett/the-detective-novel-is-the-art-for-art-s-sake-of-our-yawning/) [V. S. Pritchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-pritchett/) > [Believe it or not, most people think of me as a recording artist, but actually the way I think of myself and the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/believe-it-or-not-most-people-think-of-me-as-a-recording-artist-but/) [Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/) > [“I saw a painting once where the artist had actually done that--signed his work in blood. ... When I saw that, I thought it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-bartlett/i-saw-a-painting-once-where-the-artist-had-actually-done-that-signed/) [Neil Bartlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-bartlett/) > [The one artist who actually had influence over me was Bo Bartlett.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sherald/the-one-artist-who-actually-had-influence-over-me-was-bo-bartlett/) [Amy Sherald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sherald/) > [I think my father would have liked to have been an artist, actually. But I think he didn't quite have perhaps the drive or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-think-my-father-would-have-liked-to-have-been-an-artist-actually/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [To be an artist — actually, to be a human being in these times — it’s all difficult. … What matters is to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-smith/to-be-an-artist-actually-to-be-a-human-being-in-these-times-it-s-all/) [Patti Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-smith/) > [I never thought, "I'm going to be an artist". When I actually began to become successful in the art world I made it a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/i-never-thought-i-m-going-to-be-an-artist-when-i-actually-began-to/) [Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/) > [My artist name is actually my real name - Denzel Curry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-curry/my-artist-name-is-actually-my-real-name-denzel-curry/) [Denzel Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-curry/) > [I love making up visual works of art in language. I get to be an artist without actually being an artist in that sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siri-hustvedt/i-love-making-up-visual-works-of-art-in-language-i-get-to-be-an/) [Siri Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siri-hustvedt/) > [As an artist you actually do have to make a choice to be an outsider. If you're an outsider you have the freedom to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-nielsen/as-an-artist-you-actually-do-have-to-make-a-choice-to-be-an-outsider/) [Connie Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-nielsen/) > [That's all I ever wanted to do in my life was music. And because I was a failed artist, I was actually able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-carter/that-s-all-i-ever-wanted-to-do-in-my-life-was-music-and-because-i-was/) [Troy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-carter/) > [I don't even know what my artist name would be. Would it be Logan Paul? Would it just be Logan? I don't know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/logan-paul/i-don-t-even-know-what-my-artist-name-would-be-would-it-be-logan-paul/) [Logan Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/logan-paul/) > [As a matter of fact I don't know of one artist as long as I've been alive that they put in regular rotation in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slaine/as-a-matter-of-fact-i-don-t-know-of-one-artist-as-long-as-i-ve-been/) [Slaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slaine/) > [Work can take on a new dimension if you know something about the artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-gross/work-can-take-on-a-new-dimension-if-you-know-something-about-the/) [Terry Gross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-gross/) ## More by Gus Van Sant > [The things that inform student culture are created and controlled by the unseen culture, the sociological aspects of our climbing culture, our 'me' generation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/the-things-that-inform-student-culture-are-created-and-controlled-by/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [I mean, I think I'm pretty sentimental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/i-mean-i-think-i-m-pretty-sentimental/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [Usually people just hire me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/usually-people-just-hire-me/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [My family moved a lot as a kid. We started in Colorado, where I lived for five years. We moved to Chicago for two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/my-family-moved-a-lot-as-a-kid-we-started-in-colorado-where-i-lived/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [No construction stiff working overtime takes more stress and straining than we did just to stay high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/no-construction-stiff-working-overtime-takes-more-stress-and/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [I've told people who have just started to make a film that the one thing you might experience is this feeling that everybody is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/i-ve-told-people-who-have-just-started-to-make-a-film-that-the-one/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [A lot of times, I relied on connections through my agency, just for financing and things like that. Even when I'm looking for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/a-lot-of-times-i-relied-on-connections-through-my-agency-just-for/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [I'm a junkie. I like drugs, I like the whole lifestyle, but it just didn't pay off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/i-m-a-junkie-i-like-drugs-i-like-the-whole-lifestyle-but-it-just-didn/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [There are all kinds of ways that people present their films, but that's kind of a good feeling, if you can make it seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/there-are-all-kinds-of-ways-that-people-present-their-films-but-that/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [I find it interesting, the different rules that apply to journalism and drama, even though journalism has become more and more about entertainment, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/i-find-it-interesting-the-different-rules-that-apply-to-journalism/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [As I do with most films, I try and find some music that you could use throughout, not just a sampling of lots of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/as-i-do-with-most-films-i-try-and-find-some-music-that-you-could-use/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [When you're on a film and you're doubting something, it's usually because you don't think the audience is going to like it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/when-you-re-on-a-film-and-you-re-doubting-something-it-s-usually/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [I don't usually direct actors in the classic sense of that word. Instead, I try to remind the characters before the shoot what's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/i-don-t-usually-direct-actors-in-the-classic-sense-of-that-word/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [When you get to be 23, 24 or 25, you start to freeze up and become an adult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/when-you-get-to-be-23-24-or-25-you-start-to-freeze-up-and-become-an/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [Upon entering my vein, the drug would start a warm edge that would surge along until the brain consumed it in a gentle explosion.It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/upon-entering-my-vein-the-drug-would-start-a-warm-edge-that-would/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) [Explore all 102 Gus Van Sant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) ## 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": "The artist himself is actually the subject in everything after, say, 1900. 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