--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Men and words are ready made, and you, O…" description: "\"Men and words are ready made, and you, O Painter, if you do not know how to make your figures move, are like an orator who knows not how to use his wor..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg" --- # Men and words are ready made, and you, O Painter, if you… ![“Men and words are ready made, and you, O Painter, if you do not know how to make your figures move, are like an orator who knows not how to use his words.” quote by Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg) > “Men and words are ready made, and you, O Painter, if you do not know how to make your figures move, are like an orator who knows not how to use his words.” [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists must know how to animate figures, like orators must know how to use words. **In simple terms:** Skillful expression requires mastery of medium. Key Takeaway Master your craft to convey meaning. Themes art communication skill Mood inspirational thoughtful Type artistic educational When to use this quote - painting - public speaking - teaching - design Key Concepts visual arts rhetoric education Questions to Reflect On - What makes art or speech compelling? - How do you develop mastery? A Different Perspective Technical skill alone may not guarantee impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Orator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/orator/) [Orators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/orators/) [Painter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painter/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) ## Related quotes > [Ya better come inside, when you're ready to, but no chance if ya don't wanna dance, you like four letter words when you're ready…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/def-leppard/ya-better-come-inside-when-you-re-ready-to-but-no-chance-if-ya-don-t/) [Def Leppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/def-leppard/) > [If it is naturally in you to be a good orator, a notable orator you will be when you have acquired knowledge and practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-it-is-naturally-in-you-to-be-a-good-orator-a-notable-orator-you/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Here comes the orator with his flood of words and his drop of reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/here-comes-the-orator-with-his-flood-of-words-and-his-drop-of-reason/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [The Orator persuades and carries all with him, he knows not how; the Rhetorician can prove that he ought to have persuaded and carried…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-orator-persuades-and-carries-all-with-him-he-knows-not-how-the/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [A good talker, even more than a good orator, implies a good audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-stephen/a-good-talker-even-more-than-a-good-orator-implies-a-good-audience/) [Leslie Stephen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-stephen/) > [Where judgment has wit to express it, there's the best orator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-penn/where-judgment-has-wit-to-express-it-there-s-the-best-orator/) [William Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-penn/) > [An orator can hardly get beyond commonplaces: if he does he gets beyond his hearers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/an-orator-can-hardly-get-beyond-commonplaces-if-he-does-he-gets/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [ Let arms yield to the toga, let the \[victor's\] laurel yield to the \[orator's\] tongue. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/let-arms-yield-to-the-toga-let-the-victor-s-laurel-yield-to-the/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [An orator is a good man who is skilled in speaking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cato-the-elder/an-orator-is-a-good-man-who-is-skilled-in-speaking/) [Cato the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cato-the-elder/) > [Swami Vivekananda: The genuine orator exercises a sort of hypnotism over his audience. I have listened to many orators, Indian, English and American; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keshub-chandra-sen/swami-vivekananda-the-genuine-orator-exercises-a-sort-of-hypnotism/) [Keshub Chandra Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keshub-chandra-sen/) > [Like a rough orator, that brings more truth Than rhetoric, to make good his accusation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-massinger/like-a-rough-orator-that-brings-more-truth-than-rhetoric-to-make-good/) [Philip Massinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-massinger/) > [You could be the World's greatest orator and if you don't say anything while orating, they are going to walk out on you after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/you-could-be-the-world-s-greatest-orator-and-if-you-don-t-say/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [The orator, who may be silent without danger, may praise without difficulty and without reluctance; and posterity will confess that the character of Theodosius…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/the-orator-who-may-be-silent-without-danger-may-praise-without/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [An accomplished mathematician, i.e. a most wretched orator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-barrow/an-accomplished-mathematician-i-e-a-most-wretched-orator/) [Isaac Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-barrow/) > [There are prating coxcombs in the world who would rather talk than listen, although Shakespeare himself were the orator, and human nature the theme!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/there-are-prating-coxcombs-in-the-world-who-would-rather-talk-than/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) ## More by Leonardo da Vinci > [The evil which does me no harm is like the good which in no wise avails me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/the-evil-which-does-me-no-harm-is-like-the-good-which-in-no-wise/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [A painter should begin every canvas with a wash of black, because all things in nature are dark except where exposed by the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/a-painter-should-begin-every-canvas-with-a-wash-of-black-because-all/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Nothing can be love or hated unless it is first known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/nothing-can-be-love-or-hated-unless-it-is-first-known/) [Leonardo Da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [An arch consists of two weaknesses which, leaning one against the other, make a strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/an-arch-consists-of-two-weaknesses-which-leaning-one-against-the/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [But to me all sciences seem vain and full of error that are not born of experience, mother of all certainty, and do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/but-to-me-all-sciences-seem-vain-and-full-of-error-that-are-not-born/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [“Time stays long enough for those who use it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/time-stays-long-enough-for-those-who-use-it/) [Leonardo Da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [It is ordained that to the ambitious, who derive no satisfaction from the gifts of life and the beauty of the world, life shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/it-is-ordained-that-to-the-ambitious-who-derive-no-satisfaction-from/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Be a mirror, absorb everything around you and still remain the same](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/be-a-mirror-absorb-everything-around-you-and-still-remain-the-same/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Your brain is much better than you think; just use it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/your-brain-is-much-better-than-you-think-just-use-it/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Necessity is a guardian in Nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/necessity-is-a-guardian-in-nature/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Human subtlety will never devise an invention more beautiful, more simple or more direct than does nature because in her inventions nothing is lacking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/human-subtlety-will-never-devise-an-invention-more-beautiful-more/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [People reveal themselves completely only when they are thrown out of the customary conditions of their life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/people-reveal-themselves-completely-only-when-they-are-thrown-out-of/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [To be a winner you must want to win but must know of the chance of losing and must not fear of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/to-be-a-winner-you-must-want-to-win-but-must-know-of-the-chance-of/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Nature is so delightful and abundant in its variations that among trees of the same kind there would not be found one which nearly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/nature-is-so-delightful-and-abundant-in-its-variations-that-among/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Wisdom is the daughter of experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/wisdom-is-the-daughter-of-experience/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) [Explore all 664 Leonardo da Vinci quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) ## 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": "Men and words are ready made, and you, O Painter, if you do not know how to make your figures move, are like an orator who knows not how to use his words.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Leonardo da Vinci" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-painter-if-you-do-not-know-how/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-painter-if-you-do-not-know-how/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc0/leonardo-da-vinci-330_artist_men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-p_2819649.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Men and words are ready made, and you, O Painter, if you do not know how to make your figures move, are like…” — Leonardo da Vinci", "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": "Leonardo da Vinci", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Men and words are ready made,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-painter-if-you-do-not-know-how/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/men-and-words-are-ready-made-and-you-o-painter-if-you-do-not-know-how/#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 } } ] } ```