---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The current demoralization of the art…"
description: "\"The current demoralization of the art world is attributable at least in part to museum interference, ideological and practical, with ongoing creation i..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png"
---

#  The current demoralization of the art world is…

![“The current demoralization of the art world is attributable at least in part to museum interference, ideological and practical, with ongoing creation in art.” quote by Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png)

> “The current demoralization of the art world is attributable at least in part to museum interference, ideological and practical, with ongoing creation in art.”

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Museums' ideological and logistical control stifles artistic vitality, leading to widespread demoralization among creators.

**In simple terms:** Institutional constraints dampen artistic spirit.

Key Takeaway

Museums can hinder creative freedom.

Themes

artistic autonomy institutional power cultural criticism creative demoralization

Mood

critical reflective cynical

Type

observation critique cultural commentary

When to use this quote

- gallery curators limiting experimental work
- artists facing funding restrictions
- collectives reacting to institutional pressure

Key Concepts

museum influence artist morale art world dynamics

Practical Applications

- advocating for independent exhibition spaces
- policy reforms to reduce museum gatekeeping

Questions to Reflect On

- How might artists reclaim agency within institutional frameworks?
- What alternatives exist to traditional museum models?

A Different Perspective

Some argue museums preserve cultural heritage and provide essential resources, balancing control with support.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-world/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Demoralization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demoralization/) [Museums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/museums/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [We trained hard, but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams we would be reorganized. Presumably the plans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlton-ogburn/we-trained-hard-but-it-seemed-that-every-time-we-were-beginning-to/)

Charlton Ogburn

> [Demoralization of the target audience is yet another step in successful mind control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joost-meerloo/demoralization-of-the-target-audience-is-yet-another-step-in/)

[Joost Meerloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joost-meerloo/)

> [The whole history of man is continuous proof of the maxim that to divest one's methods of ethical concepts means to sink into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-goldman/the-whole-history-of-man-is-continuous-proof-of-the-maxim-that-to/)

[Emma Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-goldman/)

> [Create accomplishment from disappointments. Demoralization and disappointment are two of the surest going stones to achievement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/create-accomplishment-from-disappointments-demoralization-and/)

[Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/)

> [Regret what? That secret operation was an excellent idea. It had the effect of drawing the Russians into the Afghan trap and you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-brzezinski/regret-what-that-secret-operation-was-an-excellent-idea-it-had-the/)

[Zbigniew Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-brzezinski/)

> [No country, however rich, can afford the waste of its human resources. Demoralization caused by vast unemployment is our greatest extravagance. Morally, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/no-country-however-rich-can-afford-the-waste-of-its-human-resources/)

[Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/)

> [“. . . but in the great demoralization of the land he kept up his appearance. That's backbone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/but-in-the-great-demoralization-of-the-land-he-kept-up-his-appearance/)

[Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/)

> [Some who have been perfectly healthy and able to bear children have avoided this responsibility, and in doing so have resorted to the use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-e-petersen/some-who-have-been-perfectly-healthy-and-able-to-bear-children-have/)

[Mark E. Petersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-e-petersen/)

> [“You must see, then, that the socialist democrats cannot in conscience allow men any liberty, because, by their own nature, they tend in every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/you-must-see-then-that-the-socialist-democrats-cannot-in-conscience/)

[Frédéric Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/)

> [“Of all their enemies -- the cold, the ice, the sea -- he feared none more than demoralization.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/of-all-their-enemies-the-cold-the-ice-the-sea-he-feared-none-more/)

[Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/)

> [What the horrors of war are, no one can imagine. They are not wounds and blood and fever, spotted and low, or dysentery, chronic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-nightingale/what-the-horrors-of-war-are-no-one-can-imagine-they-are-not-wounds/)

[Florence Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-nightingale/)

> [“I am learning the pathways of the heart, Eleanor thought quite seriously, and then wondered what she could have meant by thinking any such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/i-am-learning-the-pathways-of-the-heart-eleanor-thought-quite/)

[Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/)

> [It is hard to conceive of the utter demoralization, of the political blindness and immorality, of the patriotic dishonesty, of the cruelty and degradation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/it-is-hard-to-conceive-of-the-utter-demoralization-of-the-political/)

[Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/)

> [A person who has been seduced by the consumer value system, whose identity is dissolved in an amalgam of the accouterments trappings of mass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/a-person-who-has-been-seduced-by-the-consumer-value-system-whose/)

[Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/)

> [“How to immunize yourself against the great D.P. (Demoralization Process) which is inexorably reaching its plateau? 1) Recognize it for what it is: a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-to-immunize-yourself-against-the-great-d-p-demoralization-process/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Harold Rosenberg

> [Politics in the United States consists of the struggle between those whose change has been arrested by success or failure, on one side, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/politics-in-the-united-states-consists-of-the-struggle-between-those/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Whoever undertakes to create soon finds himself engaged in creating himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/whoever-undertakes-to-create-soon-finds-himself-engaged-in-creating/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Kitsch is the daily art of our time, as the vase or the hymn was for earlier generations. For the sensibility it has that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/kitsch-is-the-daily-art-of-our-time-as-the-vase-or-the-hymn-was-for/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [The internationalization of art becomes a factor contributing to the estrangement of art from the artist. The sum of works of all times and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-internationalization-of-art-becomes-a-factor-contributing-to-the/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Both art and the artist lack identity and define themselves only through their encounter with each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/both-art-and-the-artist-lack-identity-and-define-themselves-only/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [It is not logical for art to be logical. Art goes against the grain of the times as readily as it goes with it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/it-is-not-logical-for-art-to-be-logical-art-goes-against-the-grain-of/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [The new painting has broken down every distinction between art and life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-new-painting-has-broken-down-every-distinction-between-art-and/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [The values to which the conservative appeals are inevitably caricatured by the individuals designated to put them into practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-values-to-which-the-conservative-appeals-are-inevitably/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Imitation of the art of earlier centuries, as that done by Picasso and Modigliani , is carried on not to perpetuate ancient values but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/imitation-of-the-art-of-earlier-centuries-as-that-done-by-picasso-and/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Abstract art as it is conceived at present is a game bequeathed to painting and sculpture by art history. One who accepts its premises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/abstract-art-as-it-is-conceived-at-present-is-a-game-bequeathed-to/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [A painting that is an act is inseparable from the biography of the artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/a-painting-that-is-an-act-is-inseparable-from-the-biography-of-the/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [The skills of the modern artist are the opposite of those of the craftsman: instead of acquiring techniques for producing classes of objects, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-skills-of-the-modern-artist-are-the-opposite-of-those-of-the/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Co-operating critics comb the studios like big-league scouts, prepared to spot the art of the future and to take lead in establishing reputations. Art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/co-operating-critics-comb-the-studios-like-big-league-scouts-prepared/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Only conservatives believe that subversion is still being carried on in the arts and that society is being shaken by it...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/only-conservatives-believe-that-subversion-is-still-being-carried-on/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

> [Kitsch is art that follows established rules in a time when all rules in art are put into question by each artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/kitsch-is-art-that-follows-established-rules-in-a-time-when-all-rules/)

[Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

[Explore all 52 Harold Rosenberg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/)

## 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 current demoralization of the art world is attributable at least in part to museum interference, ideological and practical, with ongoing creation in art.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Harold Rosenberg"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-world-is-attributable-at-least/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-world-is-attributable-at-least/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/159/harold-rosenberg-12873_art_the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-wo_23688.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The current demoralization of the art world is attributable at least in part to museum interference…” — Harold Rosenberg",
                "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": "Harold Rosenberg",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The current demoralization of the art...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-world-is-attributable-at-least/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/the-current-demoralization-of-the-art-world-is-attributable-at-least/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
