---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would say any creative person has that…"
description: "\"I would say any creative person has that: you can't just force a topic. Whether you're a painter, you want to do a cartoon. Anything. Something may com..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg"
---

#  I would say any creative person has that: you can't just…

![“I would say any creative person has that: you can't just force a topic. Whether you're a painter, you want to do a cartoon. Anything. Something may come up that's not your style or suited to what you are working on at the moment. So you file it away and hopefully find a place for it.” quote by Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg)

> “I would say any creative person has that: you can't just force a topic. Whether you're a painter, you want to do a cartoon. Anything. Something may come up that's not your style or suited to what you are working on at the moment. So you file it away and hopefully find a place for it.”

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Creative work cannot be forced; ideas appear spontaneously and must be set aside until the right context arises.

**In simple terms:** Creativity is spontaneous, not forced.

Key Takeaway

Respect the timing of ideas and revisit them later.

Themes

creativity patience process flexibility

Mood

reflective pragmatic

Type

advice inspirational

When to use this quote

- writing sessions
- design projects
- brainstorming

Key Concepts

spontaneity incubation idea management

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you capture fleeting ideas?
- When have you revisited an idea successfully?

A Different Perspective

Ideas may be missed if not captured properly.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Creative person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-person/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [If you're a painter and you want people to know who you are and recognize your work, you've got to build some long-term value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-soderbergh/if-you-re-a-painter-and-you-want-people-to-know-who-you-are-and/)

[Steven Soderbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-soderbergh/)

> [“...colonialism in Africa was inevitable since the fittest and most creative person was the one that would be destined to lead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-a-david/colonialism-in-africa-was-inevitable-since-the-fittest-and-most/)

[S. A. David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-a-david/)

> [A consistently highly creative person is generally irresponsible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-levitt/a-consistently-highly-creative-person-is-generally-irresponsible/)

[Theodore Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-levitt/)

> [When a well-known creative person such as me is perceived to have created a knockoff of my own previous work, such a perception is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bass/when-a-well-known-creative-person-such-as-me-is-perceived-to-have/)

[Saul Bass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bass/)

> [“This wariness of authority reflected the most fundamental of all of Einstein’s moral principles: Freedom and individualism are necessary for creativity and imagination to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-isaacson/this-wariness-of-authority-reflected-the-most-fundamental-of-all-of/)

[Walter Isaacson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-isaacson/)

> [You have to recognize as a creative person that not everyone's going to be into what you're doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-north/you-have-to-recognize-as-a-creative-person-that-not-everyone-s-going/)

[Ryan North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-north/)

> [If you're alive, you're a creative person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/if-you-re-alive-you-re-a-creative-person/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [I've got what I want, and I've got the luck to express myself and to be paid and to do what I do as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riccardo-tisci/i-ve-got-what-i-want-and-i-ve-got-the-luck-to-express-myself-and-to/)

[Riccardo Tisci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riccardo-tisci/)

> [“The point of dreams was never to be the affordable option, it was the one everyone else saw as a mistake and every creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anastasia-bolinder/the-point-of-dreams-was-never-to-be-the-affordable-option-it-was-the/)

Anastasia Bolinder

> [“The examination of even a small part of the world's music and what it means to various peoples and to various creative persons is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-partch/the-examination-of-even-a-small-part-of-the-world-s-music-and-what-it/)

[Harry Partch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-partch/)

> [Sometimes we have to take on jobs that we don't love, and I always encourage any creative person to use those as the fuel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-bucatinsky/sometimes-we-have-to-take-on-jobs-that-we-don-t-love-and-i-always/)

[Dan Bucatinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-bucatinsky/)

> [Gambles are the most fun because it's part of being an actor or being a creative person. It's risky only in the vulnerable sense.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-stone/gambles-are-the-most-fun-because-it-s-part-of-being-an-actor-or-being/)

[Emma Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-stone/)

> [A truly creative person rids him or herself of all self-imposed limitations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-jampolsky/a-truly-creative-person-rids-him-or-herself-of-all-self-imposed/)

[Gerald Jampolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-jampolsky/)

> [If I have not the power to put myself in the place of other people, but must be continually burrowing inward, I shall never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/if-i-have-not-the-power-to-put-myself-in-the-place-of-other-people/)

[Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/)

> [If you measure success by money, then your achievements are easy to calculate. But if you're a creative person and you measure your achievements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-fitzgerald/if-you-measure-success-by-money-then-your-achievements-are-easy-to/)

[Tara Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-fitzgerald/)

## More by Kenya Barris

> [I wanted to do a show about a family that is absolutely black. Because as Du Bois has shown, we do have to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-wanted-to-do-a-show-about-a-family-that-is-absolutely-black-because/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [We're supposed to be becoming more evolved as a society, and we're actually becoming less evolved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/we-re-supposed-to-be-becoming-more-evolved-as-a-society-and-we-re/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [I consider myself a disciple of Norman Lear. And one of the things he did was topic-driven humor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-consider-myself-a-disciple-of-norman-lear-and-one-of-the-things-he/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [I want to start really developing more on the film side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-want-to-start-really-developing-more-on-the-film-side/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [And I feel like, as a black man within black culture, I know very well firsthand - as do my parents and my grandparents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/and-i-feel-like-as-a-black-man-within-black-culture-i-know-very-well/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [There's never really been a true apology for slavery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/there-s-never-really-been-a-true-apology-for-slavery/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [I have a 'hope for the best, expect the worst' mentality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-have-a-hope-for-the-best-expect-the-worst-mentality/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [For me, one of the big things I really worried about a lot was nuclear war growing up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/for-me-one-of-the-big-things-i-really-worried-about-a-lot-was-nuclear/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [I have five kids, and people can say 'nature versus nurture,' but it is nature! Nurture has so little to do with it. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-have-five-kids-and-people-can-say-nature-versus-nurture-but-it-is/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [The acknowledgement and celebration of Juneteenth as an American and possibly international holiday is something that I would put in the life goals column…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/the-acknowledgement-and-celebration-of-juneteenth-as-an-american-and/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [My kids did not know that Obama was the first black president. I felt like I needed to tell them because I felt like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/my-kids-did-not-know-that-obama-was-the-first-black-president-i-felt/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [Writers' rooms are terrifying. You take someone whose never done this before, and this is their life's dream that is about to happen or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/writers-rooms-are-terrifying-you-take-someone-whose-never-done-this/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [ABC has a general policy that you can't show images of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/abc-has-a-general-policy-that-you-can-t-show-images-of-the-world/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [As much as we want to say racism is dead, it's still rearing its ugly head constantly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/as-much-as-we-want-to-say-racism-is-dead-it-s-still-rearing-its-ugly/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [Everybody - every single person - has a story. Find yours and tell it in your voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/everybody-every-single-person-has-a-story-find-yours-and-tell-it-in/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

[Explore all 81 Kenya Barris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

## 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

> [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. 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 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/)

> [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/)

[Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/)

> [I don't believe in competitions between artists. 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": "I would say any creative person has that: you can't just force a topic. Whether you're a painter, you want to do a cartoon. Anything. Something may come up that's not your style or suited to what you are working on at the moment. So you file it away and hopefully find a place for it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Kenya Barris"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that-you-can-t-just-force-a-topic/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Artist"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that-you-can-t-just-force-a-topic/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/kenya-barris-8436_creative-person_i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that_1967079.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I would say any creative person has that: you can't just force a topic. Whether you're a painter, you want…” — Kenya Barris",
                "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": "Kenya Barris",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I would say any creative person...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that-you-can-t-just-force-a-topic/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/i-would-say-any-creative-person-has-that-you-can-t-just-force-a-topic/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
