--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While it may seem a little mundane, the…" description: "\"While it may seem a little mundane, the material realities of realizing the painting actually have a lot to do with how you should read the painting. F..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/kehinde-wiley-1194_aspect_while-it-may-seem-a-little-mundane-the-m_1659760.jpg" --- # While it may seem a little mundane, the material realities… ![“While it may seem a little mundane, the material realities of realizing the painting actually have a lot to do with how you should read the painting. For example, we assume that what the model is wearing is what we found him in in the streets. No; in fact, a lot of what happens is that in…” quote by Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/kehinde-wiley-1194_aspect_while-it-may-seem-a-little-mundane-the-m_1659760.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/kehinde-wiley-1194_aspect_while-it-may-seem-a-little-mundane-the-m_1659760.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/kehinde-wiley-1194_aspect_while-it-may-seem-a-little-mundane-the-m_1659760.jpg) > “While it may seem a little mundane, the material realities of realizing the painting actually have a lot to do with how you should read the painting. For example, we assume that what the model is wearing is what we found him in in the streets. No; in fact, a lot of what happens is that in Photoshop certain aspects are being heightened or diminished. There is no actual material truth in these 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. The quote highlights that a painting’s visual elements are often altered by digital tools, so viewers should consider technical manipulation when interpreting meaning. **In simple terms:** Paintings are edited, so interpretation must account for digital changes. Key Takeaway Look beyond surface details to understand artistic intent. Themes art interpretation digital manipulation visual perception Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical educational When to use this quote - gallery viewing - art education - curatorial analysis - digital art critique Key Concepts post‑processing material reality authenticity Questions to Reflect On - How does knowing a work was digitally altered change your view? - What responsibilities do artists have to disclose manipulation? A Different Perspective Digital edits can obscure original intent, leading to misinterpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Aspect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aspect/) [Assuming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assuming/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Example](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/example/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Material Realities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/material-realities-744469/) [Materials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/materials/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Models](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/models/) [Mundane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mundane/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Painting Actually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting-actually-744467/) [Photoshop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photoshop/) [Read Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-painting-744465/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Realizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realizing/) [Realizing Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realizing-painting-744466/) [Seems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seems/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Truth Paintings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-paintings-744468/) ## Related quotes > [It's good to be employable, but I hope to show the truth. 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I actually enjoy the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sayani-gupta/i-started-my-own-chat-show-on-instagram-that-also-takes-time-then-i/) [Sayani Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sayani-gupta/) > [ The essence of painting has actually always been to make it \[the universal\] plastically perceptible through colour and line. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piet-mondrian/the-essence-of-painting-has-actually-always-been-to-make-it-the/) [Piet Mondrian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piet-mondrian/) > [Painting is the supreme form of expression; you don't need to 'read' painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/painting-is-the-supreme-form-of-expression-you-don-t-need-to-read/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [The edge of a painting is its frontier... where the artist negotiates his boundaries with the real world... where art begins and ends and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-graham-dixon/the-edge-of-a-painting-is-its-frontier-where-the-artist-negotiates/) [Andrew Graham-Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-graham-dixon/) > [“You should understand that I did not want you to read a painting. 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I recently did some digitally-routed woodcuts because I wanted the woodcut…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grayson-perry/my-tapestries-are-woven-on-a-computer-controlled-loom-i-design-them/) [Grayson Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grayson-perry/) > [I love Photoshop more than anything in the world!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lawrence/i-love-photoshop-more-than-anything-in-the-world/) [Jennifer Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lawrence/) > [Photoshop is useful in many ways but must NEVER be used for the altering of photographs. My assistants and my agency do whatever Photoshop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/photoshop-is-useful-in-many-ways-but-must-never-be-used-for-the/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Alcohol is like Photoshop for real life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-ferrell/alcohol-is-like-photoshop-for-real-life/) [Will Ferrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-ferrell/) > [I honestly don't like Photoshop. I think when people Photoshop things, all of a sudden you're like, 'That's not even me anymore.' It takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-aldridge/i-honestly-don-t-like-photoshop-i-think-when-people-photoshop-things/) [Lily Aldridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-aldridge/) ## 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 Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. 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This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "While it may seem a little mundane, the material realities of realizing the painting actually have a lot to do with how you should read the painting. For example, we assume that what the model is wearing is what we found him in in the streets. No; in fact, a lot of what happens is that in Photoshop certain aspects are being heightened or diminished. 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