--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have said it before and I will continue…" description: "\"I have said it before and I will continue to say that I don't think art is the most effective form of protest. I don't think it changes policy; I think..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d3/martine-syms-15826_art_i-have-said-it-before-and-i-will-continu_1066528.jpg" --- # I have said it before and I will continue to say that I… ![“I have said it before and I will continue to say that I don't think art is the most effective form of protest. I don't think it changes policy; I think it changes discourse, and discourse can change ideas, and for me, that's what it's about: having that space for conversation.” quote by Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d3/martine-syms-15826_art_i-have-said-it-before-and-i-will-continu_1066528.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d3/martine-syms-15826_art_i-have-said-it-before-and-i-will-continu_1066528.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d3/martine-syms-15826_art_i-have-said-it-before-and-i-will-continu_1066528.jpg) > “I have said it before and I will continue to say that I don't think art is the most effective form of protest. I don't think it changes policy; I think it changes discourse, and discourse can change ideas, and for me, that's what it's about: having that space for conversation.” [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art may not directly change policy, but it reshapes discourse, influencing ideas and fostering conversation. **In simple terms:** Art changes conversation, not policy. Key Takeaway Use art to spark dialogue. Themes activism communication influence Mood thoughtful inspirational Type activist philosophical When to use this quote - Community forums - public installations - media campaigns Key Concepts Discourse theory cultural impact Questions to Reflect On - What conversations can art start? - How to measure discourse impact? A Different Perspective Discourse change can be slow and indirect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Effective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-effective-1754776/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Changes Discourse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/changes-discourse-2633035/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Discourse Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discourse-change-2633036/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Protest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protest/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Think Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-art/) ## Related quotes > [“Art is the most effective form of communication.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-echols/art-is-the-most-effective-form-of-communication/) [Jennifer Echols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-echols/) > [That is the way convince people. Or change them and prevent them from hurting whether themselves and others. Art is the most effective form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-echols/that-is-the-way-convince-people-or-change-them-and-prevent-them-from/) [Jennifer Echols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-echols/) > [Art is the most effective mode of communications that exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/art-is-the-most-effective-mode-of-communications-that-exists/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [Whether it's a street poster on a brick wall, a magazine cover on a newsstand, or animation on a movie screen - art is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-drooker/whether-it-s-a-street-poster-on-a-brick-wall-a-magazine-cover-on-a/) [Eric Drooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-drooker/) > [Art is most effective when concealed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/art-is-most-effective-when-concealed/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I am increasingly unimpressed by works of art that require a college degree to understand. I think that art should be for everyone. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-am-increasingly-unimpressed-by-works-of-art-that-require-a-college/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [I think as much as possible, an artist, if he has any kind of social or political concern, has to…expose as much as possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-haring/i-think-as-much-as-possible-an-artist-if-he-has-any-kind-of-social-or/) [Keith Haring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-haring/) > [I believe in advertisement and media completely. My art and my personal life are based in it. I think that the art world would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-koons/i-believe-in-advertisement-and-media-completely-my-art-and-my/) [Jeff Koons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-koons/) > [I think of art as a glue, a cultural and social glue. It's one of the means that has served to show us the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-fischl/i-think-of-art-as-a-glue-a-cultural-and-social-glue-it-s-one-of-the/) [Eric Fischl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-fischl/) > [When you think about alien intelligences making art, you then have to think about what art is and how bound up it is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/when-you-think-about-alien-intelligences-making-art-you-then-have-to/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [I don't think art is a goal orientated business. I don't do things for the challenges, I only do them because I love them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-lake/i-don-t-think-art-is-a-goal-orientated-business-i-don-t-do-things-for/) [Greg Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-lake/) > [It's sometimes hard to talk about politics and art. Obviously, I have my core beliefs, but I think art is best when it's troublesome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/it-s-sometimes-hard-to-talk-about-politics-and-art-obviously-i-have/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [I don't think it's about art being a career but it's about making sure that if art is something that you love, something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-kay/i-don-t-think-it-s-about-art-being-a-career-but-it-s-about-making/) [Sarah Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-kay/) > [I don't think art is propaganda; it should be something that liberates the soul, provokes the imagination and encourages people to go further. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-haring/i-don-t-think-art-is-propaganda-it-should-be-something-that-liberates/) [Keith Haring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-haring/) > [I think art was the one thing my high school didn't give. And I think that was probably one reason why I was interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-lichtenstein/i-think-art-was-the-one-thing-my-high-school-didn-t-give-and-i-think/) [Roy Lichtenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-lichtenstein/) ## More by Martine Syms > [Pipilotti Rist is a Swiss video artist I learned about pretty early on. She's one of the first contemporary artists I knew about and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/pipilotti-rist-is-a-swiss-video-artist-i-learned-about-pretty-early/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [I was very conscious of the film industry - a lot of people, neighbors, worked in it. I actually grew up doing a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/i-was-very-conscious-of-the-film-industry-a-lot-of-people-neighbors/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [There's an uncanniness to living in Los Angeles, from the way you move through the city to the moments of feeling familiarity or deja…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/there-s-an-uncanniness-to-living-in-los-angeles-from-the-way-you-move/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [Pop culture or advertising doesn't work perfectly. No one is watching and mindlessly accepting every part of the narrative or ideology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/pop-culture-or-advertising-doesn-t-work-perfectly-no-one-is-watching/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [Entrepreneurs create value; I wanted to create ideas that became machines for making value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/entrepreneurs-create-value-i-wanted-to-create-ideas-that-became/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [If some things don't make me feel good, I stop them. How simple, yet so hard to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/if-some-things-don-t-make-me-feel-good-i-stop-them-how-simple-yet-so/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [There's a certain amount of absurdity to the idea that having extremely crisp clothes is what's going to get you through the door. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/there-s-a-certain-amount-of-absurdity-to-the-idea-that-having/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [I'm interested in the economy of words and forms: jokes, aphorisms, copywriting, advertising, that way of writing when meaning has to be squeezed into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/i-m-interested-in-the-economy-of-words-and-forms-jokes-aphorisms/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [I guess I can be a little mischievous!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/i-guess-i-can-be-a-little-mischievous/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [My family, my background... it just parallels really nicely with a lot of social and cultural movements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/my-family-my-background-it-just-parallels-really-nicely-with-a-lot-of/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [People act like art is a white thing - or not for people of colour - when, really, so much culture and art comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/people-act-like-art-is-a-white-thing-or-not-for-people-of-colour-when/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [Representation is a sort of surveillance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/representation-is-a-sort-of-surveillance/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [There's no reason to be ashamed of feeling good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/there-s-no-reason-to-be-ashamed-of-feeling-good/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [It's very comforting to feel myself getting stronger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/it-s-very-comforting-to-feel-myself-getting-stronger/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) > [I think I do more fiction than autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-syms/i-think-i-do-more-fiction-than-autobiography/) [Martine Syms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) [Explore all 41 Martine Syms quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-syms/) ## 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": "I have said it before and I will continue to say that I don't think art is the most effective form of protest. 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