--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I begin by imagining an artwork verbally…" description: "\"I begin by imagining an artwork verbally. I try to describe in writing what the project is, what it is trying to do. I need to understand the artwork w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/maya-lin-8428_artwork_i-begin-by-imagining-an-artwork-verbally_1491932.jpg" --- # I begin by imagining an artwork verbally. I try to… ![“I begin by imagining an artwork verbally. I try to describe in writing what the project is, what it is trying to do. I need to understand the artwork without giving it a specific materiality or solid form.” quote by Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/maya-lin-8428_artwork_i-begin-by-imagining-an-artwork-verbally_1491932.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/maya-lin-8428_artwork_i-begin-by-imagining-an-artwork-verbally_1491932.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/maya-lin-8428_artwork_i-begin-by-imagining-an-artwork-verbally_1491932.jpg) > “I begin by imagining an artwork verbally. I try to describe in writing what the project is, what it is trying to do. I need to understand the artwork without giving it a specific materiality or solid form.” [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She describes a process of visualizing art through language first, material form, to grasp concept. **In simple terms:** Visualize art through words before shaping it. Key Takeaway Use verbal sketches to clarify ideas. Themes creativity conceptualization process Mood reflective inquisitive Type process conceptual When to use this quote - artistic brainstorming - design planning - creative workshops Key Concepts visual thinking artistic intent Questions to Reflect On - How does verbalizing affect your creative decisions? - Can you balance description with openness? A Different Perspective Words may limit imagination if taken too literally. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artwork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artwork/) [Artwork Verbally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artwork-verbally-5453738/) [Begin Imagining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/begin-imagining-529904/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Imagining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagining/) [Imagining Artwork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagining-artwork-5453737/) [Materiality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/materiality/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Projects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/projects/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Understand Artwork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understand-artwork-5453739/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I begin by imagining the impossible and end by accomplishing the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/i-begin-by-imagining-the-impossible-and-end-by-accomplishing-the/) [Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/) > [if we don't begin by imagining the perfect society, how shall we create one?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/if-we-don-t-begin-by-imagining-the-perfect-society-how-shall-we/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [These are some of the characteristics of the state of mind which the creation and appreciation of haiku demand: Selflessness, Loneliness, Grateful Acceptance, Wordlessness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-horace-blyth/these-are-some-of-the-characteristics-of-the-state-of-mind-which-the/) [Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-horace-blyth/) > [Sex cannot be understood because nature cannot be understood. 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But we want you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/some-say-that-you-should-not-want-money-at-all-because-the-desire-for/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) ## More by Maya Lin > [Our lives are given meaning by our actions-accomplishments made while we are "here" that extend beyond our own time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/our-lives-are-given-meaning-by-our-actions-accomplishments-made-while/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [If you don't remember history accurately, how can you learn?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/if-you-don-t-remember-history-accurately-how-can-you-learn/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [My parents are both college professors, and it made me want to question authority, standards and traditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/my-parents-are-both-college-professors-and-it-made-me-want-to/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I had very few friends. 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Yet I think none of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/ok-it-was-black-it-was-below-grade-i-was-female-asian-american-young/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [If we can't face death, we'll never overcome it. You have to look it straight in the eye. Then you can turn around and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/if-we-can-t-face-death-we-ll-never-overcome-it-you-have-to-look-it/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I can't shout out, "Do this." I don't want to be prescriptive. I want to give you facts, and that's the way I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/i-can-t-shout-out-do-this-i-don-t-want-to-be-prescriptive-i-want-to/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [Competitions are what you do as a good exercise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/competitions-are-what-you-do-as-a-good-exercise/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [You really can't function as a celebrity. Entertainers are celebrities. I'm an architect. I'm an artist. I make things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/you-really-can-t-function-as-a-celebrity-entertainers-are-celebrities/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [Some of your teachers are actually closer in age to you than you think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/some-of-your-teachers-are-actually-closer-in-age-to-you-than-you-think/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I think I needed to really move past my first public work as memorialist, and be equally balanced. 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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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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. 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