--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A lot of art can potentially make people…" description: "\"A lot of art can potentially make people uncomfortable, particularly when it deals with different times and hard issues.\" — Mary Katharine Ham" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0b/mary-katharine-ham-5137_art_a-lot-of-art-can-potentially-make-people_2319472.jpg" --- # A lot of art can potentially make people uncomfortable… ![“A lot of art can potentially make people uncomfortable, particularly when it deals with different times and hard issues.” quote by Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0b/mary-katharine-ham-5137_art_a-lot-of-art-can-potentially-make-people_2319472.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0b/mary-katharine-ham-5137_art_a-lot-of-art-can-potentially-make-people_2319472.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f0b/mary-katharine-ham-5137_art_a-lot-of-art-can-potentially-make-people_2319472.jpg) > “A lot of art can potentially make people uncomfortable, particularly when it deals with different times and hard issues.” [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art that confronts uncomfortable histories and difficult topics can provoke strong reactions, challenging audiences to reflect. **In simple terms:** Hard topics in art can make people uneasy. Key Takeaway Embrace discomfort to foster deeper understanding. Themes art discomfort history social issues Mood thoughtful provocative Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - museum exhibitions - public installations - educational workshops Key Concepts cultural critique empathy dialogue Questions to Reflect On - What role should artists play in addressing painful histories? - How can viewers engage constructively with unsettling art? A Different Perspective Audience resistance may limit impact if not guided. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Potentially](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-potentially-5538923/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Different times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-times/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Hard Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-issues-4495220/) [Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Uncomfortable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-uncomfortable/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Uncomfortable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncomfortable/) [Uncomfortable Particularly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncomfortable-particularly-5538924/) ## Related quotes > [I'm very hard on myself and I have too many issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariah-carey/i-m-very-hard-on-myself-and-i-have-too-many-issues/) [Mariah Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariah-carey/) > [You can't take the view of some of the sectarian parties that hard issues can't be confronted when dealing with workers. If you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/you-can-t-take-the-view-of-some-of-the-sectarian-parties-that-hard/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Unfortunately, it usually takes being on the other side to realize that, because obviously being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-bettis/the-grass-isn-t-always-greener-on-the-other-side-unfortunately-it/) [Jerome Bettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-bettis/) > [Confusion makes people uncomfortable. 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If not, they're probably not mixing it up enough and getting to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-lencioni/are-your-people-uncomfortable-during-meetings-and-tired-at-the-end-if/) [Patrick Lencioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-lencioni/) > [“It's like people have a place in their brain for normal, and they have a place in their brain for something obviously wrong, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-lazebnik/it-s-like-people-have-a-place-in-their-brain-for-normal-and-they-have/) [Claire LaZebnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-lazebnik/) > [“I make people uncomfortable. The kind ones get angry because their kindness doesn't work. The unkind ones get angry because they think I'm attacking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-marsden/i-make-people-uncomfortable-the-kind-ones-get-angry-because-their/) [John Marsden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-marsden/) ## More by Mary Katharine Ham > [TV images are powerful and sometimes unfair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/tv-images-are-powerful-and-sometimes-unfair/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [People will take every opportunity to pay you nothing if you're willing to do your work for free, be you man or woman. Women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/people-will-take-every-opportunity-to-pay-you-nothing-if-you-re/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [Mistakes will always happen, but the way they're corrected can help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/mistakes-will-always-happen-but-the-way-they-re-corrected-can-help/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [One of the hallmarks of a Trump administration has been to introduce us to quintessentially New York characters and their special brand of famous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/one-of-the-hallmarks-of-a-trump-administration-has-been-to-introduce/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [Passionate critics of the president often go after him because he violates norms and goes to extraordinary measures to take on his adversaries. Fair,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/passionate-critics-of-the-president-often-go-after-him-because-he/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [Before 'trolling' was a phenomenon with a well-known name, PETA had perfected it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/before-trolling-was-a-phenomenon-with-a-well-known-name-peta-had/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [Disappearing controversial words and works doesn't make us smarter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/disappearing-controversial-words-and-works-doesn-t-make-us-smarter/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [It's important to the country for the gulf between many American voters and the people who cover them to get smaller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/it-s-important-to-the-country-for-the-gulf-between-many-american/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [I always had overlapping social circles with different ideological groups and different activist groups.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/i-always-had-overlapping-social-circles-with-different-ideological/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [Criticism of a government can, of course, come from those who also have racist intent. We should always be careful not to scapegoat people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/criticism-of-a-government-can-of-course-come-from-those-who-also-have/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [There are plenty of things a White House can't control in the run-up to a midterm election. But they can control the way they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/there-are-plenty-of-things-a-white-house-can-t-control-in-the-run-up/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [Protections of free speech are what makes inclusion and diversity possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/protections-of-free-speech-are-what-makes-inclusion-and-diversity/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [The way that social media is structured, you get a payout for high emotion, for clickability. And your 40-point tax plan is not emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/the-way-that-social-media-is-structured-you-get-a-payout-for-high/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [There are injustices in the world. Life isn't fair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/there-are-injustices-in-the-world-life-isn-t-fair/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) > [When you go to a dinner party in Durham, you bring your moral outrage instead of wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-katharine-ham/when-you-go-to-a-dinner-party-in-durham-you-bring-your-moral-outrage/) [Mary Katharine Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) [Explore all 103 Mary Katharine Ham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-katharine-ham/) ## 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. 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