--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One of the most difficult things for any…" description: "\"One of the most difficult things for any artist to do is create a world that looks both completely alien yet real and possible.\" — Jim Lee" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg" --- # One of the most difficult things for any artist to do is… ![“One of the most difficult things for any artist to do is create a world that looks both completely alien yet real and possible.” quote by Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg) > “One of the most difficult things for any artist to do is create a world that looks both completely alien yet real and possible.” [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists must balance imagination with believability, crafting settings that feel unfamiliar yet plausible. **In simple terms:** Make alien worlds feel real. Key Takeaway Blend novelty with logic. Themes creativity worldbuilding artistic challenge Mood inspired thoughtful Type artistic educational When to use this quote - designing sci‑fi settings - concept art for games - illustrating fantasy novels - creating immersive installations Key Concepts imagination suspension of disbelief visual storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How do you test if a world feels possible? - What details ground the unfamiliar? A Different Perspective Too much alienation can alienate audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alien/) [Aliens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aliens/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Difficult things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-things/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [If you're going to immerse yourself in a project for three years, why not stake out a chunk of the world that is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/if-you-re-going-to-immerse-yourself-in-a-project-for-three-years-why/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [Everywhere in science the talk is of winners, patents, pressures, money, no money, the rat race, the lot; things that are so completely alien…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-goodfield/everywhere-in-science-the-talk-is-of-winners-patents-pressures-money/) [June Goodfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-goodfield/) > [Being beautiful can be a curse, especially if you want to be an artist and create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliette-lewis/being-beautiful-can-be-a-curse-especially-if-you-want-to-be-an-artist/) [Juliette Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliette-lewis/) > [If you're going to be an artist, you have to create music that moves you, and to not try to fit in so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikka-costa/if-you-re-going-to-be-an-artist-you-have-to-create-music-that-moves/) [Nikka Costa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikka-costa/) > [“You are divine, you are perfect, but as an artist, you create your own story and you have the illusion that the story is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ruiz/you-are-divine-you-are-perfect-but-as-an-artist-you-create-your-own/) [Miguel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ruiz/) > [The goal of an artist is to create the definitive work that cannot be surpassed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-goal-of-an-artist-is-to-create-the-definitive-work-that-cannot-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [I believe strongly that the word 'protest' is no excuse for bad work. The artist must create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kani/i-believe-strongly-that-the-word-protest-is-no-excuse-for-bad-work/) [John Kani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kani/) > [An artist must create. If she doesn't, she will become a menace to society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/an-artist-must-create-if-she-doesn-t-she-will-become-a-menace-to/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [A true artist could and should create till the day they die. 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We live in an age when men treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/an-artist-should-create-beautiful-things-but-should-put-nothing-of/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Your best as an artist is to create something that resonates for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/your-best-as-an-artist-is-to-create-something-that-resonates-for-you/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [One of the beauties of being an artist is that you can create a whole new world, with circumstances that are better in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-sendak/one-of-the-beauties-of-being-an-artist-is-that-you-can-create-a-whole/) [Maurice Sendak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-sendak/) > [The artist must create a spark before he can make a fire and before art is born, the artist must be ready to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auguste-rodin/the-artist-must-create-a-spark-before-he-can-make-a-fire-and-before/) [Auguste Rodin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/auguste-rodin/) > [“To question the world around us and all its complexities is not blasphamy, but simply using the mind God gave us for its intended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-marrero/to-question-the-world-around-us-and-all-its-complexities-is-not/) [Cristina Marrero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-marrero/) ## More by Jim Lee > [One of the key characteristics of the comic book medium is that it is not brought to life by just one voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/one-of-the-key-characteristics-of-the-comic-book-medium-is-that-it-is/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [Wonder Woman isn't even American; she's an Amazon princess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/wonder-woman-isn-t-even-american-she-s-an-amazon-princess/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [I don't buy comics anymore, for the most part. I eat my lunch off of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/i-don-t-buy-comics-anymore-for-the-most-part-i-eat-my-lunch-off-of/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [“Mutants, super beings, gods, aliens, a guy who sticks to walls at one extreme, a creature who eats planets at the other; Each one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/mutants-super-beings-gods-aliens-a-guy-who-sticks-to-walls-at-one/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [I like having pairs of characters to play off each other. I love drawing Batman, but he's more fun with Robin. Batman charges ahead,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/i-like-having-pairs-of-characters-to-play-off-each-other-i-love/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [The thing that weighs the most on how your final artwork turns out is the amount of time you have and the speed at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/the-thing-that-weighs-the-most-on-how-your-final-artwork-turns-out-is/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [There's also a lot of punch you get from doing an extreme closeup and have it just be that image with nothing around it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/there-s-also-a-lot-of-punch-you-get-from-doing-an-extreme-closeup-and/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [Part of running DC Comics is that it's much larger than Image Comics is, or was. There's a challenge to being one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/part-of-running-dc-comics-is-that-it-s-much-larger-than-image-comics/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [No true fan wants to go to Comic-Con and get assaulted with a marketing blitz about just any old show.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/no-true-fan-wants-to-go-to-comic-con-and-get-assaulted-with-a/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [As lifelong fans of comic books, Dan Didio and myself, we definitely have our own takes on what make for successful comics and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/as-lifelong-fans-of-comic-books-dan-didio-and-myself-we-definitely/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [There is the intent of the writer and the interpretation by the artist. What the writer intended and what the artist interprets is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/there-is-the-intent-of-the-writer-and-the-interpretation-by-the/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [Whether it be in comics, games or film, you can trace the art direction and influences back to some earlier, real-life historic period or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/whether-it-be-in-comics-games-or-film-you-can-trace-the-art-direction/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [I don't think you can be a comic book fan and not hate change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/i-don-t-think-you-can-be-a-comic-book-fan-and-not-hate-change/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [Al Plastino helped redefine Superman in the 1950s. His work on Supermans Girlfriend, Lois Lane, Adventure Comics and pretty much any title in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/al-plastino-helped-redefine-superman-in-the-1950s-his-work-on/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [Many in the creative professions were nerds in their pasts because they spent so long reading comics and using their imaginations when they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/many-in-the-creative-professions-were-nerds-in-their-pasts-because/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) [Explore all 92 Jim Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) ## More Alien quotes > [If you're going to immerse yourself in a project for three years, why not stake out a chunk of the world that is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/if-you-re-going-to-immerse-yourself-in-a-project-for-three-years-why/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [“If you are an alien, how come you sound like you're from the north?' 'Lots of planets have a north!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-t-davies/if-you-are-an-alien-how-come-you-sound-like-you-re-from-the-north/) [Russell T Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-t-davies/) > [Some pundits have proposed that the aliens have come here to breed with us. Apparently, too much bike riding or something similar has rendered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/some-pundits-have-proposed-that-the-aliens-have-come-here-to-breed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [North Korea is still my homeland, my country. I suffered on the outside because I was alien, without identity. I was nobody. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-hyeon-seo/north-korea-is-still-my-homeland-my-country-i-suffered-on-the-outside/) [Lee Hyeon-seo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-hyeon-seo/) > [I don't want to be the embarrassment of the galaxy to have had the power to deflect an asteroid, and then not and end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-be-the-embarrassment-of-the-galaxy-to-have-had-the/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Whatever is not commonly seen is condemned as alien.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/whatever-is-not-commonly-seen-is-condemned-as-alien/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Alien's a great one. That's a scary movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judd-nelson/alien-s-a-great-one-that-s-a-scary-movie/) [Judd Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judd-nelson/) > [As far as I can tell, the only unambiguous consequence of the claimed invasion of Earth by beings from another star system has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/as-far-as-i-can-tell-the-only-unambiguous-consequence-of-the-claimed/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Rick stared at him. "Your brother is an alien." "Yeah, but he's a cute one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/rick-stared-at-him-your-brother-is-an-alien-yeah-but-he-s-a-cute-one/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [You tell me you love me, but Im not sure you know what love is, or how fast it flies, or how much it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/you-tell-me-you-love-me-but-im-not-sure-you-know-what-love-is-or-how/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [Give consideration to the fact that alien astronomers could have scrutinized Earth for more than 4 billion years without detecting any radio signals, despite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/give-consideration-to-the-fact-that-alien-astronomers-could-have/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [“When I was a kid, I used to watch that show, sitting on the couch in my pajamas and wishing more than anything that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-thomas-ford/when-i-was-a-kid-i-used-to-watch-that-show-sitting-on-the-couch-in-my/) [Michael Thomas Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-thomas-ford/) > [We of alien looks or words must stick together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-sansom/we-of-alien-looks-or-words-must-stick-together/) [C.J. Sansom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-sansom/) > [One of the most interesting things for me in playing another species is that you want to make them different enough to be alien…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-murray/one-of-the-most-interesting-things-for-me-in-playing-another-species/) [Jaime Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-murray/) > [In a movie, it's often important to have aliens whose gestures and facial expressions can be 'read' by humans. And in the days before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-a-movie-it-s-often-important-to-have-aliens-whose-gestures-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) [Browse all 709 Alien quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alien/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One of the most difficult things for any artist to do is create a world that looks both completely alien yet real and possible.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jim Lee" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any-artist-to-do-is-create-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alien" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any-artist-to-do-is-create-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5b/jim-lee-7346_alien_one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any_1862326.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One of the most difficult things for any artist to do is create a world that looks both completely alien yet…” — Jim Lee", "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": "Jim Lee", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "One of the most difficult things...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any-artist-to-do-is-create-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/one-of-the-most-difficult-things-for-any-artist-to-do-is-create-a/#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 } } ] } ```