--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What we want from art is whatever is…" description: "\"What we want from art is whatever is missing from the lives we are already living and making. Something is always missing, and so art-making is endless..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/251/jane-hirshfield-2649_always_what-we-want-from-art-is-whatever-is-mis_2422550.png" --- # What we want from art is whatever is missing from the… ![“What we want from art is whatever is missing from the lives we are already living and making. Something is always missing, and so art-making is endless.” quote by Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/251/jane-hirshfield-2649_always_what-we-want-from-art-is-whatever-is-mis_2422550.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/251/jane-hirshfield-2649_always_what-we-want-from-art-is-whatever-is-mis_2422550.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/251/jane-hirshfield-2649_always_what-we-want-from-art-is-whatever-is-mis_2422550.png) > “What we want from art is whatever is missing from the lives we are already living and making. Something is always missing, and so art-making is endless.” [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art seeks to fill the voids in our lives, offering continual renewal as human experience always lacks something. **In simple terms:** Art provides what life lacks, creating endless cycles. Key Takeaway Engage with art to discover and fill personal gaps. Themes art existence longing creativity endlessness Mood inspired contemplative Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - therapy - education - community building - spiritual practice Key Concepts aesthetic fulfillment human desire creative process Questions to Reflect On - What void does art fill for you? - Can art ever be truly complete? A Different Perspective Art may not satisfy deeper existential needs for everyone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Always](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-making/) [Art Missing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-missing-2340526/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Endless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endless/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lives/) [Living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living/) [Living Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-making-760623/) [Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making/) [Missing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missing/) [Missing Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missing-art-6135444/) [Something](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/something/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-art-362219/) [Whatever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whatever/) ## Related quotes > [“People looking at art but missing the beauty in people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reuben-berger/people-looking-at-art-but-missing-the-beauty-in-people/) [Reuben Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reuben-berger/) > [I am through generalizing about ideas apart from men who generate them. I am through writing books about the dead, or writing books about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-stanley-lee/i-am-through-generalizing-about-ideas-apart-from-men-who-generate/) [Gerald Stanley Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-stanley-lee/) > [What I'm living for now is making America great again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/what-i-m-living-for-now-is-making-america-great-again/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I don't make my living making records. Maybe someday I will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-auerbach/i-don-t-make-my-living-making-records-maybe-someday-i-will/) [Dan Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-auerbach/) > [Making a living and making a life sometimes point in opposite directions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/making-a-living-and-making-a-life-sometimes-point-in-opposite/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [We should be in the business of living, not making a living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucien-bourjeily/we-should-be-in-the-business-of-living-not-making-a-living/) [Lucien Bourjeily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucien-bourjeily/) > [I aspire to eventually be making my living by making movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-king/i-aspire-to-eventually-be-making-my-living-by-making-movies/) [Richard King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-king/) > [I thought of singing and acting as a living-making. I was able to take care of myself and a few of my friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-horne/i-thought-of-singing-and-acting-as-a-living-making-i-was-able-to-take/) [Lena Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-horne/) > [“Much of education is oriented towards making a living rather then making a life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-walsh/much-of-education-is-oriented-towards-making-a-living-rather-then/) [Roger Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-walsh/) > [An education is not so much about making a living as making a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-westover/an-education-is-not-so-much-about-making-a-living-as-making-a-person/) [Tara Westover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-westover/) > [There's many times this year I've sat back and thought, I'm making a living from making things up. It's the only skill I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-mochrie/there-s-many-times-this-year-i-ve-sat-back-and-thought-i-m-making-a/) [Colin Mochrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-mochrie/) > [“you know What,Every one living for making History so am I.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil/you-know-what-every-one-living-for-making-history-so-am-i/) [Nikhil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil/) > [All my life I made a living out of hurting people. Now, I make a living out of making people laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-lamotta/all-my-life-i-made-a-living-out-of-hurting-people-now-i-make-a-living/) [Jake LaMotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-lamotta/) > [We, the creative class, are finding ways to make a living making music, drawing webcomics, writing articles, coding games, recording podcasts. Most people don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-conte/we-the-creative-class-are-finding-ways-to-make-a-living-making-music/) [Jack Conte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-conte/) > [It would be great to be able to make a living by making films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-boden/it-would-be-great-to-be-able-to-make-a-living-by-making-films/) [Anna Boden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-boden/) ## More by Jane Hirshfield > [I don't have a cell phone (though for years I've kept saying, "soon").](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-don-t-have-a-cell-phone-though-for-years-i-ve-kept-saying-soon/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [I once was asked to contribute to a mushroom poem anthology. I didn't have anything, and so instead ended up writing the introduction. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-once-was-asked-to-contribute-to-a-mushroom-poem-anthology-i-didn-t/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Everything has two endings- a horse, a piece of string, a phone call. Before a life, air. And after. As silence is not silence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/everything-has-two-endings-a-horse-a-piece-of-string-a-phone-call/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [A certain amount of housekeeping also goes on in my poems. I wash doorknobs, do dishes, mop floors, patch carpets, cook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/a-certain-amount-of-housekeeping-also-goes-on-in-my-poems-i-wash/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Self carries grief as a pack mule carries the side bags, being careful between the trees to leave extra room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/self-carries-grief-as-a-pack-mule-carries-the-side-bags-being-careful/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [My job as a human being as well as a writer is to feel as thoroughly as possible the experience that I am part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/my-job-as-a-human-being-as-well-as-a-writer-is-to-feel-as-thoroughly/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [I want to preserve a certain unknowing about my own poems - perhaps because unknowing is in itself a useful poetic thirst. To move…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-want-to-preserve-a-certain-unknowing-about-my-own-poems-perhaps/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Habit, laziness, and fear conspire to keep us comfortably within the familiar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/habit-laziness-and-fear-conspire-to-keep-us-comfortably-within-the/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [In order to gain anything, you must first lose everything](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/in-order-to-gain-anything-you-must-first-lose-everything/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [The same words come from each mouth differently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/the-same-words-come-from-each-mouth-differently/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Metaphors think with the imagination and the senses. The hot chili peppers in them explode in the mouth and the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/metaphors-think-with-the-imagination-and-the-senses-the-hot-chili/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Your fate is to be yourself, both punishment and crime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/your-fate-is-to-be-yourself-both-punishment-and-crime/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Near even a candle, the visible heat. So it is with a person in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/near-even-a-candle-the-visible-heat-so-it-is-with-a-person-in-love/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [At some point I realized that you don't get a full human life if you try to cut off one end of it, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/at-some-point-i-realized-that-you-don-t-get-a-full-human-life-if-you/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Immensity is always there, but we so often become numb to it, or deceive ourselves into thinking our own lives and selves are what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/immensity-is-always-there-but-we-so-often-become-numb-to-it-or/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) [Explore all 156 Jane Hirshfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) ## More Always quotes > [I think performing has pretty much always been a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isa-briones/i-think-performing-has-pretty-much-always-been-a-part-of-me/) [Isa Briones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isa-briones/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/) [William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I have really good lateral movement. I've always had quick lateral movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/i-have-really-good-lateral-movement-i-ve-always-had-quick-lateral/) [Austin Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-rivers/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/) [Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/) > [It's not writing in the traditional sense, but I've always said that the writing process continues on the set and even into the editing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-weide/it-s-not-writing-in-the-traditional-sense-but-i-ve-always-said-that/) [Robert B. Weide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-weide/) > [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/) [Mandy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-rose/) > [I've always been of the idea that is doesn't really matter where you are geographically - with 'Lonerism,' we made half the album in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-parker/i-ve-always-been-of-the-idea-that-is-doesn-t-really-matter-where-you/) [Kevin Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-parker/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [I always say if you put someone from a small town into a big city for ten years, then when they go back, they'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-always-say-if-you-put-someone-from-a-small-town-into-a-big-city-for/) [Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/) > [Bayern is always a team that can win the Champions League title in Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lothar-matthaus/bayern-is-always-a-team-that-can-win-the-champions-league-title-in/) [Lothar Matthaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lothar-matthaus/) [Browse all 36,048 Always quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What we want from art is whatever is missing from the lives we are already living and making. 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