--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Believing that navel-gazing in and of…" description: "\"Believing that navel-gazing in and of itself can transform itself into something that means something for society. I mean, we are communicative creatur..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edd/kehinde-wiley-1194_believe_believing-that-navel-gazing-in-and-of-it_1275065.jpg" --- # Believing that navel-gazing in and of itself can transform… ![“Believing that navel-gazing in and of itself can transform itself into something that means something for society. I mean, we are communicative creatures. We desire to sort of understand each other's experiences and points of view. Storytelling is what painting, literature, filmmaking is all about.” quote by Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edd/kehinde-wiley-1194_believe_believing-that-navel-gazing-in-and-of-it_1275065.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edd/kehinde-wiley-1194_believe_believing-that-navel-gazing-in-and-of-it_1275065.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edd/kehinde-wiley-1194_believe_believing-that-navel-gazing-in-and-of-it_1275065.jpg) > “Believing that navel-gazing in and of itself can transform itself into something that means something for society. I mean, we are communicative creatures. We desire to sort of understand each other's experiences and points of view. Storytelling is what painting, literature, filmmaking is all about.” [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. Storytelling connects humans, fostering empathy and shared understanding across media. **In simple terms:** Stories unite people. Key Takeaway Share stories to build empathy. Themes empathy communication culture Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - classroom discussion - community workshop - media production Key Concepts narrative theory collective memory Questions to Reflect On - What story changed your perspective? - How can you amplify diverse voices? A Different Perspective Stories can oversimplify complex experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Believing Navel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believing-navel-4100167/) [Creatures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creatures/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Filmmaking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filmmaking/) [Gazing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gazing/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Navel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/navel/) [Navel gazing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/navel-gazing/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [View Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/view-storytelling-4100168/) [Views](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/views/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not going to let Defense Distributed go into a pro-social NGO territory. "We should really have more women on the board." That's navel-gazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody-wilson/i-m-not-going-to-let-defense-distributed-go-into-a-pro-social-ngo/) [Cody Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cody-wilson/) > [I try not to be super self-referential about my work because it becomes like navel gazing at a certain point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ransone/i-try-not-to-be-super-self-referential-about-my-work-because-it/) [James Ransone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ransone/) > ['Slacker' is so not about navel-gazing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-linklater/slacker-is-so-not-about-navel-gazing/) [Richard Linklater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-linklater/) > [ Most books that come out with a comedy label seem to be, Eric \[Wareheim\] and I could have written, "This is our story, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-heidecker/most-books-that-come-out-with-a-comedy-label-seem-to-be-eric-wareheim/) [Tim Heidecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-heidecker/) > [When I was in college I started writing prose, because a very smart professor asked me what I like to read and I said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-febos/when-i-was-in-college-i-started-writing-prose-because-a-very-smart/) [Melissa Febos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-febos/) > [I'm more compelled as an artist to see diversification than I am to keep watching an Anglo point of view in storytelling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-russo/i-m-more-compelled-as-an-artist-to-see-diversification-than-i-am-to/) [Joe Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-russo/) > [In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious and navel gazing and kind of self serious and every once and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to-get-very-serious-and-navel/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [“The universe of his own feelings keeps crowding everyone else's out. It is a constant struggle to see other people as people, rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garth-risk-hallberg/the-universe-of-his-own-feelings-keeps-crowding-everyone-else-s-out/) [Garth Risk Hallberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garth-risk-hallberg/) > [We live in a time where there's a great deal of navel-gazing with the devices that we have that occupy so much of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ng-chin-han/we-live-in-a-time-where-there-s-a-great-deal-of-navel-gazing-with-the/) [Ng Chin Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ng-chin-han/) > [“For you cannot know the world by just navel-gazing. This is why he reads history and studies philosophy: not to draw lessons and precepts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/for-you-cannot-know-the-world-by-just-navel-gazing-this-is-why-he/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“Someone experiencing the stages of grief is rarely aware of how his behavior might appear to others. Grief often produces a “zoom lens effect,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-luckman/someone-experiencing-the-stages-of-grief-is-rarely-aware-of-how-his/) [Sol Luckman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-luckman/) > [A woman’s magazine quiz: Question: You decide to do the dread deed and just as things are starting to get hot he comes, rolls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-moore/a-woman-s-magazine-quiz-question-you-decide-to-do-the-dread-deed-and/) [Christopher Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-moore/) > [The philosophy that I've embraced isn't about sitting under a tree and studying my navel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orlando-bloom/the-philosophy-that-i-ve-embraced-isn-t-about-sitting-under-a-tree/) [Orlando Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orlando-bloom/) > [The writer must wade into life as into the sea, but only up to the navel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/the-writer-must-wade-into-life-as-into-the-sea-but-only-up-to-the/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [I have actually seen people contemplate their navels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-heilpern/i-have-actually-seen-people-contemplate-their-navels/) [John Heilpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-heilpern/) ## 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/) > [At its best, what art does is, it points to who we as human beings and what we as human beings value. And if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/at-its-best-what-art-does-is-it-points-to-who-we-as-human-beings-and/) [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/) [Explore all 275 Kehinde Wiley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) [Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Believing that navel-gazing in and of itself can transform itself into something that means something for society. I mean, we are communicative creatures. We desire to sort of understand each other's experiences and points of view. 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