--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the sculptor uses stone and if the…" description: "\"“If the sculptor uses stone and if the road builder also uses stone, the first uses it in a way that it is not used, consumed, negated by usage, but af..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png" --- # If the sculptor uses stone and if the road builder also… ![“If the sculptor uses stone and if the road builder also uses stone, the first uses it in a way that it is not used, consumed, negated by usage, but affirmed, revealed in its obscurity, as a road that leads only to itself.” quote by Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png) > ““If the sculptor uses stone and if the road builder also uses stone, the first uses it in a way that it is not used, consumed, negated by usage, but affirmed, revealed in its obscurity, as a road that leads only to itself.”” [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts artistic creation with utilitarian use, suggesting art transforms material into something that reveals its own essence rather than serving a practical purpose. **In simple terms:** Art makes material reveal itself, not just serve a function. Key Takeaway Seek to create, not just use. Themes art creation philosophy materiality meaning Mood contemplative introspective Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - sculpture - architecture - design - education - critical analysis Key Concepts aesthetics ontological transformation objecthood Questions to Reflect On - How does art change our perception of ordinary objects? - Can utility and meaning coexist? A Different Perspective Art may be inaccessible or misunderstood, limiting its impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Sculptor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sculptor/) ## Related quotes > [Man has used human rhythmic movement as raw material out of which to create works of art, as the composer of music uses sound,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-shawn/man-has-used-human-rhythmic-movement-as-raw-material-out-of-which-to/) [Ted Shawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-shawn/) > [Being a sculptor who uses found objects, all the objects I use in my work have been designed by other people. So I'm tweaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-parker/being-a-sculptor-who-uses-found-objects-all-the-objects-i-use-in-my/) [Cornelia Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-parker/) > [“Even a stone has its uses, and man who is the most intelligent of all creatures must be of some use, hasn't he?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolai-gogol/even-a-stone-has-its-uses-and-man-who-is-the-most-intelligent-of-all/) [Nikolai Gogol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolai-gogol/) > [“The road is a river of ice, slick and unforgiving. A harsh sweep of white iron, smooth as glass and cold enough to freeze…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-hayes/the-road-is-a-river-of-ice-slick-and-unforgiving-a-harsh-sweep-of/) [Ned Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-hayes/) > [“This Stone He went looking for a road that doesn't lead to death. He went looking for that road and found it. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/this-stone-he-went-looking-for-a-road-that-doesn-t-lead-to-death-he/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [I'm a Jewel when I'm with U…else am a stone by the road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santanu-mishra/i-m-a-jewel-when-i-m-with-u-else-am-a-stone-by-the-road/) [Santanu Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santanu-mishra/) > [A gentleman is not born but crafted. He had to work on himself in the same way as a sculptor shaped a rough stone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/a-gentleman-is-not-born-but-crafted-he-had-to-work-on-himself-in-the/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“I am the mountain and the sculptor, losing myself, finding myself, revealing what was there all along.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-k-asante/i-am-the-mountain-and-the-sculptor-losing-myself-finding-myself/) [M.K. Asante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-k-asante/) > [It's very inconvenient being a sculptor. It's like playing the double-bass; one's so handicapped by one's baggage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/it-s-very-inconvenient-being-a-sculptor-it-s-like-playing-the-double/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [“I used to know a sculptor," Isabella said, nodding. "He always said that if you looked hard enough, you could see where each person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-bauermeister/i-used-to-know-a-sculptor-isabella-said-nodding-he-always-said-that/) [Erica Bauermeister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-bauermeister/) > [My dad is a sculptor and a painter, and mum runs an art gallery, which sells beautiful jewelry and ceramics and paintings - local…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-palladio/my-dad-is-a-sculptor-and-a-painter-and-mum-runs-an-art-gallery-which/) [Sam Palladio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-palladio/) > [Every young sculptor seems to think that he must give the world some specimen of indecorous womanhood, and call it Eve, Venus, a Nymph,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/every-young-sculptor-seems-to-think-that-he-must-give-the-world-some/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [I'm an ice sculptor. Last night I made a cube.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-m-an-ice-sculptor-last-night-i-made-a-cube/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [Carving is a source of joy to the artist. . . . To attack the raw material, gradually to extract a shape out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristide-maillol/carving-is-a-source-of-joy-to-the-artist-to-attack-the-raw-material/) Aristide Maillol > [“Perhaps the solicitation to pamper the way men live is too strong for them, for much of the business of philosophy at the present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/perhaps-the-solicitation-to-pamper-the-way-men-live-is-too-strong-for/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) ## More by Maurice Blanchot > [“How not to search that space where, for a time span lasting from dusk to dawn, two beings have no other reason to exist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/how-not-to-search-that-space-where-for-a-time-span-lasting-from-dusk/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [But my silence is real. If I hid it from you, you would find it again a little farther on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/but-my-silence-is-real-if-i-hid-it-from-you-you-would-find-it-again-a/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [“As the German expression has it, the last judgement is the youngest day, and it is a day surpassing all days. Not that judgement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/as-the-german-expression-has-it-the-last-judgement-is-the-youngest/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [“Writing is not destined to leave traces, but to erase, by traces, all traces, to disappear in the fragmentary space of writing more definitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/writing-is-not-destined-to-leave-traces-but-to-erase-by-traces-all/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [A writer who writes, ''I am alone''... can be considered rather comical. It is comical for a man to recognize his solitude by addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/a-writer-who-writes-i-am-alone-can-be-considered-rather-comical-it-is/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [“I went in; I closed the door. I sat down on the bed. Blackest space extended before me. I was not in this blackness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/i-went-in-i-closed-the-door-i-sat-down-on-the-bed-blackest-space/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [“But this is the rule, and there is no way to free oneself of it: as soon as the thought has arisen, it must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/but-this-is-the-rule-and-there-is-no-way-to-free-oneself-of-it-as/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [The Journal is not essentially a confession, a story about oneself. It is a Memorial. What does the writer have to remember? Himself, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/the-journal-is-not-essentially-a-confession-a-story-about-oneself-it/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [We can never put enough distance between ourselves and what we love. To think that God is, is still to think of him as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/we-can-never-put-enough-distance-between-ourselves-and-what-we-love/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [A writer never reads his work. For him, it is the unreadable, a secret, and he cannot remain face to face with it. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/a-writer-never-reads-his-work-for-him-it-is-the-unreadable-a-secret/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [Lovers of painting and lovers of music are people who openly display their preference like a delectable ailment that isolates them and makes them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/lovers-of-painting-and-lovers-of-music-are-people-who-openly-display/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [“When Kafka allows a friend to understand that he writes because otherwise he would go mad, he knows that writing is madness already, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/when-kafka-allows-a-friend-to-understand-that-he-writes-because/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [“The anonymous puts the name in place, leaves it empty, as if the name were there only to let itself be passed through because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/the-anonymous-puts-the-name-in-place-leaves-it-empty-as-if-the-name/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [If nothing were substituted for everything, it would still be too much and too little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/if-nothing-were-substituted-for-everything-it-would-still-be-too-much/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) > [What if what has been said one time not only does not cease to be said but always recommences, and not only recommences but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/what-if-what-has-been-said-one-time-not-only-does-not-cease-to-be/) [Maurice Blanchot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) [Explore all 42 Maurice Blanchot quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/) ## 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": "“If the sculptor uses stone and if the road builder also uses stone, the first uses it in a way that it is not used, consumed, negated by usage, but affirmed, revealed in its obscurity, as a road that leads only to itself.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Maurice Blanchot" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-road-builder-also-uses-stone/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-road-builder-also-uses-stone/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/33a/maurice-blanchot-12571_artist_if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-ro_407432.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If the sculptor uses stone and if the road builder also uses stone, the first uses it in a way that it is…” — Maurice Blanchot", "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": "Maurice Blanchot", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-blanchot/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If the sculptor uses stone and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-road-builder-also-uses-stone/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-blanchot/if-the-sculptor-uses-stone-and-if-the-road-builder-also-uses-stone/#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 } } ] } ```