--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A painter paints his pictures on canvas…" description: "\"A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. We provide the music, and you provide the silence.\" — Leopold S..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/leopold-stokowski-34018_artist_a-painter-paints-his-pictures-on-canvas_544785.jpg" --- # A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians… ![“A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. We provide the music, and you provide the silence.” quote by Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/leopold-stokowski-34018_artist_a-painter-paints-his-pictures-on-canvas_544785.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/leopold-stokowski-34018_artist_a-painter-paints-his-pictures-on-canvas_544785.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53d/leopold-stokowski-34018_artist_a-painter-paints-his-pictures-on-canvas_544785.jpg) > “A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. We provide the music, and you provide the silence.” [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artistic expression can be conveyed through sound as well as visual media, using silence as a canvas for music. **In simple terms:** Music uses silence like a painter uses canvas. Key Takeaway Embrace silence to highlight music. Themes creativity art music Mood reflective inspired Type metaphorical inspirational When to use this quote - concerts - recording studios - film scoring - audio installations Key Concepts aesthetic theory soundscape Questions to Reflect On - How can you use pauses to enhance a musical piece? - What does silence add to visual art? A Different Perspective Silence may be perceived as emptiness, limiting impact if not purposeful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) ## Related quotes > [A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/a-painter-paints-pictures-on-canvas-but-musicians-paint-their/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [As a painter paints pictures on a wall, the intellect goes on creating the world in the heart always.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brahmananda-saraswati/as-a-painter-paints-pictures-on-a-wall-the-intellect-goes-on-creating/) Brahmananda Saraswati > [The way Ben Gibbard paints a picture, you feel like, 'I was there that day with him.' You really feel the way he paints…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-bellion/the-way-ben-gibbard-paints-a-picture-you-feel-like-i-was-there-that/) [Jon Bellion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-bellion/) > [I'm not some kind of machine that paints pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-pearson-wright/i-m-not-some-kind-of-machine-that-paints-pictures/) [Stuart Pearson Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-pearson-wright/) > [At my death paint my body with red paint and plunge it into fresh water to be restored back to life, otherwise my bones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crazy-horse/at-my-death-paint-my-body-with-red-paint-and-plunge-it-into-fresh/) [Crazy Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crazy-horse/) > [It is no use painting the foot of the tree white, the strength of the bark cries out from beneath the paint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aime-cesaire/it-is-no-use-painting-the-foot-of-the-tree-white-the-strength-of-the/) [Aime Cesaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aime-cesaire/) > [I learned to paint at home from my mom. She was a very good teacher, but with spray paint, I taught myself. Spray paint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alec-monopoly/i-learned-to-paint-at-home-from-my-mom-she-was-a-very-good-teacher/) [Alec Monopoly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alec-monopoly/) > [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/) > [“Peeta doesn’t need a brush to paint images from the Games. He works just as well in words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/peeta-doesn-t-need-a-brush-to-paint-images-from-the-games-he-works/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [If there is a conflict in your mind between what you know and what you are seeing, paint what you see because if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-schmid/if-there-is-a-conflict-in-your-mind-between-what-you-know-and-what/) [Richard Schmid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-schmid/) > [If your life is full, you will paint full pictures. If it is empty, your pictures will be empty too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-dunn/if-your-life-is-full-you-will-paint-full-pictures-if-it-is-empty-your/) [Harvey Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-dunn/) > [The impulse to paint comes neither from observation nor from the soul (which is probably blind) but from an encounter: the encounter between painter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berger/the-impulse-to-paint-comes-neither-from-observation-nor-from-the-soul/) [John Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berger/) > [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/) > [“We were poor, but we were happy. We didn’t have much, but we were painting. (Interview in Washington Mag)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfredo-arreguin/we-were-poor-but-we-were-happy-we-didn-t-have-much-but-we-were/) Alfredo Arreguin > [I do Taekwondo and sometimes I paint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mackenzie-foy/i-do-taekwondo-and-sometimes-i-paint/) [Mackenzie Foy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mackenzie-foy/) ## More by Leopold Stokowski > [Music comes from the heart and returns to the heart... music is spontaneous, impulsive expression... its range is without limit... music is forever growing...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/music-comes-from-the-heart-and-returns-to-the-heart-music-is/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [Music can be all things to all men. It is like a great dynamic sun in the center of a solar system which sends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/music-can-be-all-things-to-all-men-it-is-like-a-great-dynamic-sun-in/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [I simply make music, and people have always been foolish enough to pay me for it. I never told them that I would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/i-simply-make-music-and-people-have-always-been-foolish-enough-to-pay/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [As a boy I remember how terribly real the statues of the saints would seem at 7 o'clock Mass-before I'd had breakfast. From that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/as-a-boy-i-remember-how-terribly-real-the-statues-of-the-saints-would/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [Music appeals to me for what can be done with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/music-appeals-to-me-for-what-can-be-done-with-it/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [Conscience is that which hurts when everything else feels marvelous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/conscience-is-that-which-hurts-when-everything-else-feels-marvelous/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [The highest reaches of music come thrillingly close to the central core and essence of life itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/the-highest-reaches-of-music-come-thrillingly-close-to-the-central/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [I believe in a passionately strong feeling for the poetry of life - for the beautiful, the mysterious, the romantic, the ecstatic - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/i-believe-in-a-passionately-strong-feeling-for-the-poetry-of-life-for/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [On matters of intonation and technicalities I am more than a martinet - I am a martinetissimo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/on-matters-of-intonation-and-technicalities-i-am-more-than-a-martinet/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [Music can be all things to all persons. It is like a great dynamic sun in the center of a solar system which sends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/music-can-be-all-things-to-all-persons-it-is-like-a-great-dynamic-sun/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [It's hard to put into words the impact of the perfect lyric, melody or contagious beat that moves you in an unexpected way. Authors,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/it-s-hard-to-put-into-words-the-impact-of-the-perfect-lyric-melody-or/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/a-painter-paints-pictures-on-canvas-but-musicians-paint-their/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) > [It seemed impossible to leave the world until I had produced all that I felt called upon to produce, and so I endured this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/it-seemed-impossible-to-leave-the-world-until-i-had-produced-all-that/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) [Explore all 14 Leopold Stokowski quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) ## 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": "A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. 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