--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do not care to paint portraits indoors…" description: "\"I do not care to paint portraits indoors. I cannot feel sympathetic.\" — Joaquin Sorolla" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54e/joaquin-sorolla-31054_artist_i-do-not-care-to-paint-portraits-indoors_252772.png" --- # I do not care to paint portraits indoors. I cannot feel… ![“I do not care to paint portraits indoors. I cannot feel sympathetic.” quote by Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54e/joaquin-sorolla-31054_artist_i-do-not-care-to-paint-portraits-indoors_252772.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54e/joaquin-sorolla-31054_artist_i-do-not-care-to-paint-portraits-indoors_252772.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54e/joaquin-sorolla-31054_artist_i-do-not-care-to-paint-portraits-indoors_252772.png) > “I do not care to paint portraits indoors. I cannot feel sympathetic.” [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Painting indoors feels in; the artist needs external stimuli to feel empathy. **In simple terms:** Environment influences artistic empathy. Key Takeaway Find inspiring surroundings. Themes creativity environment empathy Mood reflective creative Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - studio work - travel - nature - exhibitions Key Concepts artistic expression sensory experience Questions to Reflect On - How does your space affect your work? - What environments spark your empathy? A Different Perspective Indoor settings can also inspire with imagination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Portraiture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/portraiture/) [Sympathetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathetic/) ## Related quotes > [I hate to paint portraits! I hope never to paint another portrait in my life. Portraiture may be all right for a man in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-singer-sargent/i-hate-to-paint-portraits-i-hope-never-to-paint-another-portrait-in/) [John Singer Sargent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-singer-sargent/) > [I never wanted to be commissioned to paint portraits. I like to choose my own subject and make a character study from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-dobell/i-never-wanted-to-be-commissioned-to-paint-portraits-i-like-to-choose/) [William Dobell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-dobell/) > [I think my characters with my fingers, I think my characters with my guts. But when I say I think them, that is what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-think-my-characters-with-my-fingers-i-think-my-characters-with-my/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [“I feel jerked around. I feel sympathetic. I feel abused. It's almost harder to see Nathaniel on the good days than the bad, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-lopez/i-feel-jerked-around-i-feel-sympathetic-i-feel-abused-it-s-almost/) [Steve Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-lopez/) > [I'm a capitalist. I'm not going to feel sympathetic to people leading a life they don't have to lead who, with effort, could maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-caudwell/i-m-a-capitalist-i-m-not-going-to-feel-sympathetic-to-people-leading/) [John Caudwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-caudwell/) > [I have children. I have other concerns. I have other focuses. I really feel very sympathetic and I would love to be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/i-have-children-i-have-other-concerns-i-have-other-focuses-i-really/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [The idea that people feel that they have to be sympathetic to me? It's a funny concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-phelps-roper/the-idea-that-people-feel-that-they-have-to-be-sympathetic-to-me-it-s/) [Megan Phelps-Roper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-phelps-roper/) > [I think every person has a unique story to tell and we each have the different life events that happen to us and sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/i-think-every-person-has-a-unique-story-to-tell-and-we-each-have-the/) [Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/) > [A man cannot paint portraits till he has seen faces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-nestell-bovee/a-man-cannot-paint-portraits-till-he-has-seen-faces/) [Christian Nestell Bovee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-nestell-bovee/) > [Kenneth Hari does not paint portraits as they are but as he is. I feel he is hiding something from me. To board a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/kenneth-hari-does-not-paint-portraits-as-they-are-but-as-he-is-i-feel/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [I think I was driven to paint portraits to commit images of friends and family to memory. I have face blindness, and once a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-close/i-think-i-was-driven-to-paint-portraits-to-commit-images-of-friends/) [Chuck Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-close/) > [People don't have time to wait for somebody to paint their portraits anymore. The money is in photography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mapplethorpe/people-don-t-have-time-to-wait-for-somebody-to-paint-their-portraits/) [Robert Mapplethorpe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mapplethorpe/) > [If a figure doesn't look back at you, you forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/if-a-figure-doesn-t-look-back-at-you-you-forget-it/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [We're wired to be empathetic and to care about the needs of others, but also to be curious about others. And I think that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/we-re-wired-to-be-empathetic-and-to-care-about-the-needs-of-others/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [After 20 years of painting wildlife subjects in acrylic, I felt the need for a change and began to explore portraiture and landscape in oils.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-parker/after-20-years-of-painting-wildlife-subjects-in-acrylic-i-felt-the/) Ron Parker ## More by Joaquin Sorolla > [My only ambition was to create an honest picture that would interpret nature as she really is, as she ought to be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/my-only-ambition-was-to-create-an-honest-picture-that-would-interpret/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [How long did it take me to delimit this art? Twenty years! ... It was a laborious process, but a methodical and rational one;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/how-long-did-it-take-me-to-delimit-this-art-twenty-years-it-was-a/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [The older I become, the more I realize that drawing is the most important of all the problems of picture-making.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/the-older-i-become-the-more-i-realize-that-drawing-is-the-most/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [All inspired painters are impressionists, even though it be true that some impressionists are not inspired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/all-inspired-painters-are-impressionists-even-though-it-be-true-that/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [Go to nature with no parti pris. You should not know what your picture is to look like until it is done. Just see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/go-to-nature-with-no-parti-pris-you-should-not-know-what-your-picture/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [As far as outdoor work is concerned, a studio is only a garage; a place in which to store pictures and repair them, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/as-far-as-outdoor-work-is-concerned-a-studio-is-only-a-garage-a-place/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [If ever a painter wrought a miracle of illusion with brush and pigment that painter was Velazquez in his Las Meninas, at the Prado…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/if-ever-a-painter-wrought-a-miracle-of-illusion-with-brush-and/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [All the mistakes committed by artists are due to their having separated themselves from truth, believing that their imagination is stronger. There is nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/all-the-mistakes-committed-by-artists-are-due-to-their-having/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [The great difficulty with large canvases is that they should by right be painted as fast as a sketch. By speed only can you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/the-great-difficulty-with-large-canvases-is-that-they-should-by-right/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [I hate darkness. Claude Monet once said that painting in general did not have light enough in it. I agree with him. We painters,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/i-hate-darkness-claude-monet-once-said-that-painting-in-general-did/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [When an artist begins to count strokes instead of regarding nature he is lost. This preoccupation with technique, at the expense of truth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/when-an-artist-begins-to-count-strokes-instead-of-regarding-nature-he/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [Nature, the sun itself, produces color effects... instantaneously. The impression of these evanescent visions is what we make desperate attempts to catch and fix…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/nature-the-sun-itself-produces-color-effects-instantaneously-the/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [I could not paint at all if I had to paint slowly. Every effect is so transient, it must be rapidly painted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/i-could-not-paint-at-all-if-i-had-to-paint-slowly-every-effect-is-so/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [A studio is a good place to smoke your pipe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/a-studio-is-a-good-place-to-smoke-your-pipe/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) > [No, mes amis, impressionism is not charlatanry, nor a formula, nor a school. I should say rather it is the bold resolve to throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-sorolla/no-mes-amis-impressionism-is-not-charlatanry-nor-a-formula-nor-a/) [Joaquin Sorolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) [Explore all 17 Joaquin Sorolla quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-sorolla/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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 > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [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 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/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I do not care to paint portraits indoors. 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