--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My initial plan was to spend a year in…" description: "\"My initial plan was to spend a year in France, go to some kind of school and learn a bit of French. I went a year in an American college in the outskir..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d2/john-howe-30938_art_my-initial-plan-was-to-spend-a-year-in-f_3020805.png" --- # My initial plan was to spend a year in France, go to some… ![“My initial plan was to spend a year in France, go to some kind of school and learn a bit of French. I went a year in an American college in the outskirts of Strasbourg, but got a glimpse of a real art school, L'Ecole des Arts Decoratifs, and enrolled the following year.” quote by John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d2/john-howe-30938_art_my-initial-plan-was-to-spend-a-year-in-f_3020805.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d2/john-howe-30938_art_my-initial-plan-was-to-spend-a-year-in-f_3020805.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d2/john-howe-30938_art_my-initial-plan-was-to-spend-a-year-in-f_3020805.png) > “My initial plan was to spend a year in France, go to some kind of school and learn a bit of French. I went a year in an American college in the outskirts of Strasbourg, but got a glimpse of a real art school, L'Ecole des Arts Decoratifs, and enrolled the following year.” [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A planned year in France shifted to an unexpected art school, leading to a new educational path. **In simple terms:** Plans changed, leading to new opportunities. Key Takeaway Embrace unexpected opportunities. Themes education travel art adaptability Mood curious reflective Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - study abroad - art school enrollment Key Concepts career pivots learning journeys Questions to Reflect On - What can you learn from unplanned paths? - How to stay flexible in plans? A Different Perspective Unexpected changes can cause uncertainty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-school/) [College](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/college/) [France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/france/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) ## Related quotes > [“Although 2015 was certainly an anomaly, the fact remains that in one year France suffered more mass public shooting casualties—killings and injuries—than the U.S.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-r-lott-jr/although-2015-was-certainly-an-anomaly-the-fact-remains-that-in-one/) [John R. Lott Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-r-lott-jr/) > [They had spent a year in France for no particular reason, and then drifted here and there unrestfully wherever people played polo and were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/they-had-spent-a-year-in-france-for-no-particular-reason-and-then/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [I only went a year to high school. I should have been in high school, but I was in a band, and when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-noone/i-only-went-a-year-to-high-school-i-should-have-been-in-high-school/) [Peter Noone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-noone/) > [The first year at Juilliard is, I think, the best. And partly why I left - I only went one year. Partly why I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-bentley/the-first-year-at-juilliard-is-i-think-the-best-and-partly-why-i-left/) [Wes Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-bentley/) > [Everyone in my family went to college. So I went for a year to appease people, in a way. I didn't really see that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-weber/everyone-in-my-family-went-to-college-so-i-went-for-a-year-to-appease/) [Charlie Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-weber/) > [I don't think I went a year or so without a record between 1959 and 1979, sometimes two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-van-ronk/i-don-t-think-i-went-a-year-or-so-without-a-record-between-1959-and/) [Dave Van Ronk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-van-ronk/) > [I spend a part of the year in New York when based in L.A. and vice versa. It's the only way I feel balanced.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hale-appleman/i-spend-a-part-of-the-year-in-new-york-when-based-in-l-a-and-vice/) [Hale Appleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hale-appleman/) > [I would love to spend a year living in New York; I've wanted to do that since I was 18. I'll be really disappointed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-bruhl/i-would-love-to-spend-a-year-living-in-new-york-i-ve-wanted-to-do/) [Daniel Bruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-bruhl/) > [I had always wanted to see Europe, and what better way to see it than to spend a year there playing basketball?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-d-antoni/i-had-always-wanted-to-see-europe-and-what-better-way-to-see-it-than/) [Mike D'Antoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-d-antoni/) > [I think a lot of times when people have "creative blocks" and I know my share of friends do as well if they're at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/i-think-a-lot-of-times-when-people-have-creative-blocks-and-i-know-my/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [We never splurge on Diwali. How much can you spend on yourself? As it is, we do that throughout the year, so why not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-shroff/we-never-splurge-on-diwali-how-much-can-you-spend-on-yourself-as-it/) [Jackie Shroff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-shroff/) > [I think it's incredibly important to spend the first year with your child, and it should be made possible for all women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neve-campbell/i-think-it-s-incredibly-important-to-spend-the-first-year-with-your/) [Neve Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neve-campbell/) > [I spend about a year between novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-tyler/i-spend-about-a-year-between-novels/) [Anne Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-tyler/) > [Right now, America doesn't ask us to do anything besides pay taxes. We don't even have to vote. But as psychologists will tell you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-junger/right-now-america-doesn-t-ask-us-to-do-anything-besides-pay-taxes-we/) [Sebastian Junger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-junger/) > [I just want to be Patty McCormack. I want to spend every year aging the way she has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-varney/i-just-want-to-be-patty-mccormack-i-want-to-spend-every-year-aging/) [Janet Varney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-varney/) ## More by John Howe > [I have a website because it's an interesting tool, very - and quite unexpectedly - useful for my work. It's become an archive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/i-have-a-website-because-it-s-an-interesting-tool-very-and-quite/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [All in all, Tolkien fans are as varied, remarkable and marvelous as the books and the worlds that they share. They make me feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/all-in-all-tolkien-fans-are-as-varied-remarkable-and-marvelous-as-the/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Occasionally projects just take off unexpectedly, sometimes you can work away at sketches and ideas for years before they are published. There are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/occasionally-projects-just-take-off-unexpectedly-sometimes-you-can/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Drawing must seek for interest, not for admiration. Because admiration wears quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/drawing-must-seek-for-interest-not-for-admiration-because-admiration/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Drawing must seek interest, not admiration. Because admiration wears quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/drawing-must-seek-interest-not-admiration-because-admiration-wears/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Daydreaming with pencil and paper is a respectable form of meditation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/daydreaming-with-pencil-and-paper-is-a-respectable-form-of-meditation/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [God loves you enough , trusts you enough, to let affliction come into your life to see whether you will exercise the muscles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/god-loves-you-enough-trusts-you-enough-to-let-affliction-come-into/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [I have been illustrating Tolkien's books ever since I first read them, long before illustration became my profession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/i-have-been-illustrating-tolkien-s-books-ever-since-i-first-read-them/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [What a folly to dread the thought of throwing away life at once, and yet have no regard to throwing it away by parcels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/what-a-folly-to-dread-the-thought-of-throwing-away-life-at-once-and/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [More often than not, however, the person who flatly states 'Elves aren't like that!' is hard pressed to describe how they really look… as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/more-often-than-not-however-the-person-who-flatly-states-elves-aren-t/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Information and inspiration are everywhere... history, art, architecture, everything an illustrator needs. Europe is, after all, the land that has generated most of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/information-and-inspiration-are-everywhere-history-art-architecture/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Character is power; it makes friends, draws patronage and support and opens the way to wealth, honor and happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/character-is-power-it-makes-friends-draws-patronage-and-support-and/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [I initially moved to Switzerland for work on an animated feature film, and have been here ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/i-initially-moved-to-switzerland-for-work-on-an-animated-feature-film/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [What can make your work interesting is as much who you are, as how you draw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/what-can-make-your-work-interesting-is-as-much-who-you-are-as-how-you/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [Dragons and bridges are very much something out of fairy tales and fantasy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/dragons-and-bridges-are-very-much-something-out-of-fairy-tales-and/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) [Explore all 17 John Howe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) ## 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": "My initial plan was to spend a year in France, go to some kind of school and learn a bit of French. 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