--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that an obsession with art…" description: "\"I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to the work.\" — Kehinde Wiley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg" --- # I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to… ![“I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to the work.” quote by Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg) > “I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to the work.” [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. The quote reflects that an intense focus on art history can inspire artistic creation, suggesting that deep study fuels creative work. **In simple terms:** Art history obsession can spark creation. Key Takeaway Study the past to inform your art. Themes art history inspiration creation research Mood reflective inspirational Type artistic educational When to use this quote - museum curation - art education - personal practice Key Concepts cultural heritage artistic influence creative process Questions to Reflect On - How does historical knowledge shape your work? - Can you create without extensive study? A Different Perspective It may imply obsession is necessary. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-history/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Obsession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obsession/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“It’s not love. It’s an obsession. And it’s not art. It’s a way of seeing things. 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I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bell-hooks/i-think-we-are-obsessed-in-the-u-s-with-the-personal-in-ways-that/) [Bell Hooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bell-hooks/) > [I think there has always been an obsession with youth and beauty. What's missing is the equal obsession with respect for…older people…and their wisdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-christie/i-think-there-has-always-been-an-obsession-with-youth-and-beauty-what/) [Julie Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-christie/) > [I don't think I have an obsession, however I do eat chocolate every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ripert/i-don-t-think-i-have-an-obsession-however-i-do-eat-chocolate-every-day/) [Eric Ripert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ripert/) > [I think the obsession with wanting to change yourself is crazy over the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-the-obsession-with-wanting-to-change-yourself-is-crazy-over/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Obsession is a negative word, I do not think that obsession can bring positive things. Not only in tennis but, I mean in any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novak-djokovic/obsession-is-a-negative-word-i-do-not-think-that-obsession-can-bring/) [Novak Djokovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novak-djokovic/) > [I do not think that obsession is funny or that not being able to stop one's intensity is funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-dine/i-do-not-think-that-obsession-is-funny-or-that-not-being-able-to-stop/) [Jim Dine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-dine/) > [“..if you put people on a diet, they start thinking about food. Or if you make someone stop smoking, all they think about is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-leon/if-you-put-people-on-a-diet-they-start-thinking-about-food-or-if-you/) [Donna Leon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-leon/) > [If you look at the paintings that I love in art history, these are the paintings where great, powerful men are being celebrated on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/if-you-look-at-the-paintings-that-i-love-in-art-history-these-are-the/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I have a fondness for making paintings that go beyond just having a conversation about art for art's sake or having a conversation about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-have-a-fondness-for-making-paintings-that-go-beyond-just-having-a/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [This is - it's a sociological experiment in many ways. And so you're seeing the results of what happens when you put a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/this-is-it-s-a-sociological-experiment-in-many-ways-and-so-you-re/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [It became a question of taste. I have a certain taste in art history. And that - I had a huge library of art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/it-became-a-question-of-taste-i-have-a-certain-taste-in-art-history/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [ He \[Michael Jackson\] would choose specific moments. They were art history books that I prefer. They were paintings that he prefers. It's this dance… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/he-michael-jackson-would-choose-specific-moments-they-were-art/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) ## 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 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": "I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to the work.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kehinde Wiley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-history-gave-rise-to-the-work/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-history-gave-rise-to-the-work/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/kehinde-wiley-1194_art_i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-histo_2818235.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think that an obsession with art history gave rise to the work.” — Kehinde Wiley", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Kehinde Wiley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think that an obsession with...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-history-gave-rise-to-the-work/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/i-think-that-an-obsession-with-art-history-gave-rise-to-the-work/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```