--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The closer and more completely you can…" description: "\"The closer and more completely you can come to explaining what a work of art means, the less like art it seems.\" — Laura Miller" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png" --- # The closer and more completely you can come to explaining… ![“The closer and more completely you can come to explaining what a work of art means, the less like art it seems.” quote by Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png) > “The closer and more completely you can come to explaining what a work of art means, the less like art it seems.” [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The more precisely we try to explain a work of art, the more it loses its mysterious, artistic quality. **In simple terms:** Over‑explaining art strips its mystery. Key Takeaway Embrace ambiguity in artistic interpretation. Themes art interpretation mystery language Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - museum visits - art education - creative writing Key Concepts aesthetic theory critical analysis Questions to Reflect On - How much explanation is too much? - Can mystery coexist with analysis? A Different Perspective Risk of stifling personal connection. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Means](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-means/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Explaining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/explaining/) [Explaining Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/explaining-work-941155/) [Like Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-art/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Work Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-art/) [Works of art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/works-of-art/) ## Related quotes > [People have to find ways of explaining the work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andres-serrano/people-have-to-find-ways-of-explaining-the-work/) [Andres Serrano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andres-serrano/) > [Art to me means lot of things - images and words. I may be no artist myself, but I recognise the pleasure you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/art-to-me-means-lot-of-things-images-and-words-i-may-be-no-artist/) [Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/) > [Morality, like art, means drawing a line someplace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/morality-like-art-means-drawing-a-line-someplace/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The art is more important than the artist. The work is more important than the person who does it. You must be prepared to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-alexander/the-art-is-more-important-than-the-artist-the-work-is-more-important/) [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) > [This telegram is a work of art if I say it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rauschenberg/this-telegram-is-a-work-of-art-if-i-say-it-is/) [Robert Rauschenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rauschenberg/) > [...a genuine work of art, can never be false, nor can it be discredited through the lapse of time, for it does not present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-genuine-work-of-art-can-never-be-false-nor-can-it-be-discredited/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A work of art expresses itself as a balance sheet pitting the spoken against the unspoken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-sherman/a-work-of-art-expresses-itself-as-a-balance-sheet-pitting-the-spoken/) [Russell Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-sherman/) > [A work of art doesn't exist outside the perception of the audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbas-kiarostami/a-work-of-art-doesn-t-exist-outside-the-perception-of-the-audience/) [Abbas Kiarostami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbas-kiarostami/) > [We have nothing to lose, nothing to gain, nothing we desired anymore- except to make our lives into a work of art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lana-del-rey/we-have-nothing-to-lose-nothing-to-gain-nothing-we-desired-anymore/) [Lana Del Rey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lana-del-rey/) > [All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/all-art-is-at-once-surface-and-symbol-those-who-go-beneath-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [A work of art is itself an object, first of all, and so manipulation is unavoidable: it's a prerequisite. But I needed the greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/a-work-of-art-is-itself-an-object-first-of-all-and-so-manipulation-is/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [Mystery is the essential element of every work of art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-bunuel/mystery-is-the-essential-element-of-every-work-of-art/) [Luis Bunuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-bunuel/) > [Art goes on in your head. If you said something interesting, that might be a title for a work of art and I'd write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/art-goes-on-in-your-head-if-you-said-something-interesting-that-might/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [The ultimate justification of the work of art is to help the spectator to become a work of art himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-ultimate-justification-of-the-work-of-art-is-to-help-the/) [Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/) > [Society takes what it wants. The artist himself does not count, because there is no actual existence for the work of art. The work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/society-takes-what-it-wants-the-artist-himself-does-not-count-because/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) ## More by Laura Miller > [If we weigh the significance of a book by the effect it has on its readers, then the great children's books suddenly turn up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/if-we-weigh-the-significance-of-a-book-by-the-effect-it-has-on-its/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Hope is a funny thing when you think about it. It’s something you always have. You just have to believe you do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/hope-is-a-funny-thing-when-you-think-about-it-it-s-something-you/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Desire acts as a honey trap to the unwary male, luring him into unworthy and catastrophic enterprises. The beauty of the Narnian witches isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/desire-acts-as-a-honey-trap-to-the-unwary-male-luring-him-into/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [Others like City Hall the old way, when they could make deals behind closed doors with your tax money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/others-like-city-hall-the-old-way-when-they-could-make-deals-behind/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Life didn’t go how I had planned, but I couldn’t have planned a better life. 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Or maybe we were just meant to find each other in this one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/maybe-we-knew-each-other-in-another-life-or-maybe-we-were-just-meant/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [People like to complain about the state of contemporary literature, but I can only assume they don't read it very widely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/people-like-to-complain-about-the-state-of-contemporary-literature/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“I can see how James or Greene might agree with this point of view: the former finds that the ugly old lamp no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-can-see-how-james-or-greene-might-agree-with-this-point-of-view-the/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) [Explore all 66 Laura Miller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "The closer and more completely you can come to explaining what a work of art means, the less like art it seems.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laura Miller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-come-to-explaining-what-a-work/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-come-to-explaining-what-a-work/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f33/laura-miller-10358_art_the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-c_784938.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The closer and more completely you can come to explaining what a work of art means, the less like art it…” — Laura Miller", "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": "Laura Miller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The closer and more completely you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-come-to-explaining-what-a-work/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/the-closer-and-more-completely-you-can-come-to-explaining-what-a-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 } } ] } ```