--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No, I didn't become disenchanted. I just…" description: "\"No, I didn't become disenchanted. I just couldn't paint like them.\" — Lawrence Ferlinghetti" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3c/lawrence-ferlinghetti-7689_artist_no-i-didn-t-become-disenchanted-i-just-c_2513353.jpg" --- # No, I didn't become disenchanted. I just couldn't paint… ![“No, I didn't become disenchanted. I just couldn't paint like them.” quote by Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3c/lawrence-ferlinghetti-7689_artist_no-i-didn-t-become-disenchanted-i-just-c_2513353.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3c/lawrence-ferlinghetti-7689_artist_no-i-didn-t-become-disenchanted-i-just-c_2513353.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3c/lawrence-ferlinghetti-7689_artist_no-i-didn-t-become-disenchanted-i-just-c_2513353.jpg) > “No, I didn't become disenchanted. I just couldn't paint like them.” [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Admitting artistic limits while acknowledging admiration for peers, highlighting humility and self‑awareness. **In simple terms:** I couldn't paint like them, so I stay honest. Key Takeaway Accept your limits and stay true to your voice. Themes humility artistic honesty self‑awareness Mood thoughtful encouraging Type creative motivational When to use this quote - art school - first exhibition - career crossroads - peer critique Key Concepts creative struggle identity comparative self‑evaluation Questions to Reflect On - What unique perspective can you offer despite technical gaps? - How can you grow without mimicking others? A Different Perspective Risk of stagnation if self‑criticism becomes discouraging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Disenchanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disenchanted/) ## Related quotes > [I used to want to be a writer or a painter, although I couldn't paint very well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jisoo/i-used-to-want-to-be-a-writer-or-a-painter-although-i-couldn-t-paint/) [Jisoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jisoo/) > [Paint what you like and die happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/paint-what-you-like-and-die-happy/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [I'd been taught to paint like other people, and I thought, what's the use? I couldn't do any better than they, or even as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/i-d-been-taught-to-paint-like-other-people-and-i-thought-what-s-the/) [Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/) > [No artist, if he has original talent, can paint like another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-plaskett/no-artist-if-he-has-original-talent-can-paint-like-another/) [Joseph Plaskett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-plaskett/) > [When I was a kid, I always used to paint. I like to draw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marky-ramone/when-i-was-a-kid-i-always-used-to-paint-i-like-to-draw/) [Marky Ramone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marky-ramone/) > [If you were to say to me that I couldn't paint, I would write. If I couldn't write, I would be a set designer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-slick/if-you-were-to-say-to-me-that-i-couldn-t-paint-i-would-write-if-i/) [Grace Slick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-slick/) > [People were very affected by the war. But it didn't mean you stopped painting unless you were called into the Army; then you just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-krasner/people-were-very-affected-by-the-war-but-it-didn-t-mean-you-stopped/) [Lee Krasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-krasner/) > [“Why then did she do it? She looked at the canvas, lightly scored with running lines. It would be hung in the servants' bedrooms.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/why-then-did-she-do-it-she-looked-at-the-canvas-lightly-scored-with/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“she heard some voice saying she couldn't paint, saying she couldn't create, as if she were caught up in one of those habitual currents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/she-heard-some-voice-saying-she-couldn-t-paint-saying-she-couldn-t/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [My father kind of had hopes that I was going to become an artist like him - the typical thing. Of course I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-russell/my-father-kind-of-had-hopes-that-i-was-going-to-become-an-artist-like/) [David Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-russell/) > [“ Pain. You overwhelm me," he said quietly. "And every time I see you or think of you, I can't grab a brush fast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-w-hill/pain-you-overwhelm-me-he-said-quietly-and-every-time-i-see-you-or/) [Joey W. Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-w-hill/) > [If there were only one truth, you couldn't paint a hundred canvases on the same theme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/if-there-were-only-one-truth-you-couldn-t-paint-a-hundred-canvases-on/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [I have never voted. Like most people I am utterly disenchanted by politics. Like most people I regard politicians as frauds and liars and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-brand/i-have-never-voted-like-most-people-i-am-utterly-disenchanted-by/) [Russell Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-brand/) > [Feeling very disenchanted. God is testing me and I do well in tests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/feeling-very-disenchanted-god-is-testing-me-and-i-do-well-in-tests/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Since God is silent, man is his own master; he must live in a disenchanted world, submit everything to criticism, and make his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gay/since-god-is-silent-man-is-his-own-master-he-must-live-in-a/) [Peter Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gay/) ## More by Lawrence Ferlinghetti > [“I am waiting for the meek to be blessed and inherit the earth... without taxes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-am-waiting-for-the-meek-to-be-blessed-and-inherit-the-earth-without/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [We have to raise the consciousness; the only way poets can change the world is to raise the consciousness of the general populace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/we-have-to-raise-the-consciousness-the-only-way-poets-can-change-the/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [I didn’t know that painters and writers retired. They’re like soldiers – they just fade away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-didn-t-know-that-painters-and-writers-retired-they-re-like-soldiers/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [I certainly was surprised to be named Poet Laureate of this far-out city on the left side of the world, and I gratefully accept,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/i-certainly-was-surprised-to-be-named-poet-laureate-of-this-far-out/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [Paperbacks weren't considered real books in the book trade. Up till then it was just murder mysteries, potboilers, 25-cent pocket books sold in newsstands.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/paperbacks-weren-t-considered-real-books-in-the-book-trade-up-till/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [Poetry is the shadow cast by our streetlight imaginations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/poetry-is-the-shadow-cast-by-our-streetlight-imaginations/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [The real literary editors have mostly been fired. Those that remain are all ottom line editors; everything depends on the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/the-real-literary-editors-have-mostly-been-fired-those-that-remain/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [“Cast up the heart flops over gasping 'Love' a foolish fish which tries to draw its breath from flesh of air And no one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/cast-up-the-heart-flops-over-gasping-love-a-foolish-fish-which-tries/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [The paintings may communicate even better because people are lazy and they can look at a painting with less effort than they can read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/the-paintings-may-communicate-even-better-because-people-are-lazy-and/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [Poetry can change the world, just like any art can change the world, by changing consciousness. Of course this was the great slogan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/poetry-can-change-the-world-just-like-any-art-can-change-the-world-by/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [As I get older I perceive Life has its tail in its mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/as-i-get-older-i-perceive-life-has-its-tail-in-its-mouth/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [Almost every truly creative being alienated & expatriated in his own country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/almost-every-truly-creative-being-alienated-expatriated-in-his-own/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [The future of publishing lies with the small and medium-sized presses, because the big publishers in New York are all part of huge conglomerates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/the-future-of-publishing-lies-with-the-small-and-medium-sized-presses/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [The art has to make it on its own, without explanations, and it’s the same for poetry. If the poem or the painting has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/the-art-has-to-make-it-on-its-own-without-explanations-and-it-s-the/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [There is an ecstatic mechanism in birds that makes them fly upwards in spite of worms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/there-is-an-ecstatic-mechanism-in-birds-that-makes-them-fly-upwards/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) [Explore all 88 Lawrence Ferlinghetti quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) ## 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": "No, I didn't become disenchanted. 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