--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I went to art school, I was just…" description: "\"When I went to art school, I was just having fun. I realised that was the last chance I had, and then I would have to get a job.\" — John Baldessari" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/john-baldessari-16840_art_when-i-went-to-art-school-i-was-just-hav_1963030.png" --- # When I went to art school, I was just having fun. I… ![“When I went to art school, I was just having fun. I realised that was the last chance I had, and then I would have to get a job.” quote by John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/john-baldessari-16840_art_when-i-went-to-art-school-i-was-just-hav_1963030.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/john-baldessari-16840_art_when-i-went-to-art-school-i-was-just-hav_1963030.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/john-baldessari-16840_art_when-i-went-to-art-school-i-was-just-hav_1963030.png) > “When I went to art school, I was just having fun. I realised that was the last chance I had, and then I would have to get a job.” [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Realizing art was a fleeting opportunity before needing a stable job. **In simple terms:** Art was a temporary joy before work. Key Takeaway Cherish creative moments while they last. Themes art career time urgency creativity Mood reflective nostalgic Type personal reflective When to use this quote - college life - career planning - creative projects Key Concepts impermanence career transition value of art Questions to Reflect On - How do you prioritize art versus income? - What sacrifices are you willing to make for creativity? A Different Perspective Balancing passion with financial stability can be tough. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-school/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Chance Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance-job-1049331/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Fun Realised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun-realised-3251445/) [Get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Having](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having/) [Having fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-fun/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [Last](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/last/) [Last chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/last-chance/) [Realised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realised/) [Realised Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realised-chance-3251444/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Then](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/then/) [Went Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/went-art/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) ## Related quotes > [I was probably 13 or 14 when I realised I had a chance to make it. 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You cannot take yourself seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/if-you-take-yourself-too-seriously-you-ve-got-no-chance-in-this-job/) [William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/) > [I went to art school when I was little. I took ballet lessons. I played a little kick ball. I was sort of into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-seyfried/i-went-to-art-school-when-i-was-little-i-took-ballet-lessons-i-played/) [Amanda Seyfried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-seyfried/) > [My dad went to art school when I was one. They scraped and continued scraping, because artists, as we all know, don't earn a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bonnar/my-dad-went-to-art-school-when-i-was-one-they-scraped-and-continued/) [Mark Bonnar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bonnar/) > [I really didn't know what I wanted to do. I went to art school and tried a bunch of different things, but I knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sofia-coppola/i-really-didn-t-know-what-i-wanted-to-do-i-went-to-art-school-and/) [Sofia Coppola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sofia-coppola/) > [I got into architecture because I was searching for a way to produce in the world. I went to art school and thought I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-adjaye/i-got-into-architecture-because-i-was-searching-for-a-way-to-produce/) [David Adjaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-adjaye/) > [I got really into art at school and then went onto art college in California.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bud-luckey/i-got-really-into-art-at-school-and-then-went-onto-art-college-in/) [Bud Luckey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bud-luckey/) > [I went to art school, I think it helped me a great deal because it taught me who I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-deshannon/i-went-to-art-school-i-think-it-helped-me-a-great-deal-because-it/) [Jackie DeShannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-deshannon/) > [I went to art school in the days when it was what you did if you didn't want to be like everybody else. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-capaldi/i-went-to-art-school-in-the-days-when-it-was-what-you-did-if-you-didn/) [Peter Capaldi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-capaldi/) > [I went to an art school and you learn very quickly there that you're only as good as your next idea, not so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-ervin-beam/i-went-to-an-art-school-and-you-learn-very-quickly-there-that-you-re/) [Samuel Ervin Beam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-ervin-beam/) > [At school, I was basically a loner, it was hard until I was 15 or so. Then I went to art school and was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-o-sullivan/at-school-i-was-basically-a-loner-it-was-hard-until-i-was-15-or-so/) [Gilbert O'Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-o-sullivan/) > [I went to an art school in high school and got in a little trouble like you do when you're a teenager and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-marvel/i-went-to-an-art-school-in-high-school-and-got-in-a-little-trouble/) [Elizabeth Marvel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-marvel/) > [I went to art school, but I didn't last because in those days you couldn't take comics as a course. And they weren't even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trina-robbins/i-went-to-art-school-but-i-didn-t-last-because-in-those-days-you/) [Trina Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trina-robbins/) ## More by John Baldessari > [It's human desire to be understood. And we always feel we're not understood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/it-s-human-desire-to-be-understood-and-we-always-feel-we-re-not/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Talent is cheap, you have to be possessed or obsessed, rather. You really have to feel like you cannot not do art, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/talent-is-cheap-you-have-to-be-possessed-or-obsessed-rather-you/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [The idea of vaudeville clowns and court jesters is always to show the flaw, to point out what's not working and why it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/the-idea-of-vaudeville-clowns-and-court-jesters-is-always-to-show-the/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I will not make anymore boring art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-will-not-make-anymore-boring-art/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Writing helped me understand what I was thinking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/writing-helped-me-understand-what-i-was-thinking-about/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Probably one of the worst things that happened to photography is that cameras have viewfinders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/probably-one-of-the-worst-things-that-happened-to-photography-is-that/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [There's no such thing as a bad photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-bad-photograph/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I think I live such a boring life. But I can't imagine any other kind of life, so I guess it's the life I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-think-i-live-such-a-boring-life-but-i-can-t-imagine-any-other-kind/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I was teaching live drawing in a community college and students started zoning in on the face and spending a couple of hours on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-was-teaching-live-drawing-in-a-community-college-and-students/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Ideally I would like the work to be a hybrid between painting and photography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/ideally-i-would-like-the-work-to-be-a-hybrid-between-painting-and/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Most of my friends are women. I think women are more interesting to talk to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/most-of-my-friends-are-women-i-think-women-are-more-interesting-to/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [The idea was to take fine art and put it into the location of the movie scripts. The script itself is collage - some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/the-idea-was-to-take-fine-art-and-put-it-into-the-location-of-the/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [If I saw the art around me that I liked, then I wouldn't do art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/if-i-saw-the-art-around-me-that-i-liked-then-i-wouldn-t-do-art/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I could never figure out why photography and art had separate histories. So I decided to explore both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-could-never-figure-out-why-photography-and-art-had-separate/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I go back and forth between wanting to be abundantly simple and maddeningly complex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-go-back-and-forth-between-wanting-to-be-abundantly-simple-and/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) [Explore all 38 John Baldessari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "When I went to art school, I was just having fun. 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