--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At its best, what art does is, it points…" description: "\"At its best, what art does is, it points to who we as human beings and what we as human beings value. And if Black Lives Matter, they deserve to be in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/969/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_at-its-best-what-art-does-is-it-points-t_40961.jpg" --- # At its best, what art does is, it points to who we as… ![“At its best, what art does is, it points to who we as human beings and what we as human beings value. And if Black Lives Matter, they deserve to be in paintings.” quote by Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/969/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_at-its-best-what-art-does-is-it-points-t_40961.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/969/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_at-its-best-what-art-does-is-it-points-t_40961.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/969/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_at-its-best-what-art-does-is-it-points-t_40961.jpg) > “At its best, what art does is, it points to who we as human beings and what we as human beings value. And if Black Lives Matter, they deserve to be in paintings.” [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art serves as a mirror of humanity, revealing collective identity and values, and should include marginalized voices like Black Lives Matter. **In simple terms:** Art reflects who we are and what we value. Key Takeaway Include diverse narratives in art. Themes Representation Social justice Identity Cultural critique Visibility Mood Inspirational Provocative Type Social commentary Cultural observation When to use this quote - Museum exhibitions - Public murals - Educational curricula - Community art projects Key Concepts Human dignity Collective memory Practical Applications - Curating inclusive collections - Advocating for equitable representation Questions to Reflect On - How does representation in art shape societal attitudes? - What responsibilities do artists have toward marginalized groups? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Black lives matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-lives-matter/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Value](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/value/) ## Related quotes > [Human beings put more value on materialist things than on humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kishore-bansal/human-beings-put-more-value-on-materialist-things-than-on-humanity/) [Kishore Bansal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kishore-bansal/) > [“Perhaps the measure of the best art is that it does not excite envy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/perhaps-the-measure-of-the-best-art-is-that-it-does-not-excite-envy/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [That's what the best art does, it starts the conversation. What you may see in a scene or a line isn't what I might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misha-green/that-s-what-the-best-art-does-it-starts-the-conversation-what-you-may/) [Misha Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misha-green/) > [“The first step to loving yourself begins with the words, ‘I matter.’ You deserve to occupy space. You deserve to stand up for yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-tran/the-first-step-to-loving-yourself-begins-with-the-words-i-matter-you/) Tina Tran > [“Everyone deserves more than what they have, but when you are in LOVE it doesn’t matter what you Deserve or how much more. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pratik-shimpi/everyone-deserves-more-than-what-they-have-but-when-you-are-in-love/) Pratik Shimpi > [Part 3 And here's what they deserve most; respect, love, and understanding. Sometimes, as young children, we can't understand why. But it doesn't matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-ried/part-3-and-here-s-what-they-deserve-most-respect-love-and/) [Rebecca Ried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-ried/) > [I think my life has been transformed by the ability to take things that exist in the world and look at them more closely.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-my-life-has-been-transformed-by-the-ability-to-take-things/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [“As long as art is understood and valued as an “absolute” activity, it will be a separate, elitist one. Elites presuppose masses. So far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/as-long-as-art-is-understood-and-valued-as-an-absolute-activity-it/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The best art always comes unbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-pike/the-best-art-always-comes-unbidden/) [Christopher Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-pike/) > [The best art is on the street.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurizio-cattelan/the-best-art-is-on-the-street/) [Maurizio Cattelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurizio-cattelan/) > [There is no best anything in art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-daniels/there-is-no-best-anything-in-art/) [Jeff Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-daniels/) > [First thought is best in Art, second in other matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/first-thought-is-best-in-art-second-in-other-matters/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [I've zeroed in on what you would call action and excellence... Everybody who does anything to try to succeed has to give the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-neiman/i-ve-zeroed-in-on-what-you-would-call-action-and-excellence-everybody/) [LeRoy Neiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-neiman/) > [I will say that a lot of art, some of the best art, has very powerful and meaningful messages behind it, and the more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbi-jacobson/i-will-say-that-a-lot-of-art-some-of-the-best-art-has-very-powerful/) [Abbi Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbi-jacobson/) > [If art is singular expression, then by nature, the best art is controversial. But when art stirs debate for reasons besides its artistic integrity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ridley/if-art-is-singular-expression-then-by-nature-the-best-art-is/) [John Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ridley/) ## More by Kehinde Wiley > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [The erotic and the art historical imagination is something that gets very little play when people talk about my work, and when they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/the-erotic-and-the-art-historical-imagination-is-something-that-gets/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [One of the weirdest things that happened to artists and art criticism was this moment when everyone got cynical and stopped believing in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/one-of-the-weirdest-things-that-happened-to-artists-and-art-criticism/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [My style is in the 21st century. If you look at the process, it goes from photography through Photoshop, where certain features are heightened,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/my-style-is-in-the-21st-century-if-you-look-at-the-process-it-goes/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I think the world that I grew up in was like being in this sort of magical artistic garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-the-world-that-i-grew-up-in-was-like-being-in-this-sort-of/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [It was something that came sort of matter-of-factually. Because there - it's like really - real honest engagement with the people around me and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/it-was-something-that-came-sort-of-matter-of-factually-because-there/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [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/) > [Painting is situational. And my particular situation exists within gender, race, class, sexuality, nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/painting-is-situational-and-my-particular-situation-exists-within/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [There were certain expectations that were assumed of me as a young black American 20th-century - then 20th-century artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/there-were-certain-expectations-that-were-assumed-of-me-as-a-young/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I think, something that you might be able to locate in the work that I'm creating today: the ability to look at a black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-something-that-you-might-be-able-to-locate-in-the-work-that-i/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I remember the first time I went to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and saw a Kerry James Marshall painting with black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-remember-the-first-time-i-went-to-the-los-angeles-county-museum-of/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I believe that artists should be part of the culture. I think that my work clearly bears that out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-believe-that-artists-should-be-part-of-the-culture-i-think-that-my/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I guess art is in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-guess-art-is-in-the-eye-of-the-beholder/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [Just physically, if you looked at the house that I grew up in, my mother created this greenhouse. And surrounded the entire property. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/just-physically-if-you-looked-at-the-house-that-i-grew-up-in-my/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [My interest is in completing an image that is spectacular beyond belief. My fidelity is to the image and the art and not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/my-interest-is-in-completing-an-image-that-is-spectacular-beyond/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) [Explore all 275 Kehinde Wiley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) ## 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": "At its best, what art does is, it points to who we as human beings and what we as human beings value. 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